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KAPOW! (Batman) - Original

Mark Davies British Artist

  • My interpretation of the classic and iconic Batman that is based on the early 1960s series that then became a motion picture. I wanted to go back to the very start with this as it often gets overlooked in favour of the darker releases from the Batman franchise and I have fond memories of watching the series as a Kid, well re-runs anyway! I wanted to embrace the quirky, kitsch and camp qualities of the series and ramp up the colours to reflect the vibrancy of the era that due to film and picture quality restrictions could never be replicated to the viewer.

    I love the randomness of the bat cave and the objects and trophies that were collected along with the iconic gadgets that were disguised as everyday objects. This piece embraces everything that is great about the series with a mix of clear references and subtle details that you might not typically be aware of the connection. I haven’t tried to put a deep narrative behind the piece in favour of simply showcasing everything that is wonderful and nostalgic with it, I prefer to leave it open to interpretation and to follow on from the recent pieces like Back to the future and Ghostbusters. For me it was always about the bat mobile and I have made a good reference to this within the composition, however I have gone with the very first bat mobile from the 1940s and 50s as it is absolutely brilliant and not well known. Each version of the car is so cool yet gets ditched each time in favour of a newer model so ‘KAPOW!’ could be showing a scene from within the bat cave where unwanted but cherished objects and tech have been cast aside to slowly be covered by the shifting sands within the cave.

    The bat cave is enormous in reality but very rarely shown to that level so I have created a structure where the cave walls are really intricate and sculpted to look intriguing and make you double take at certain shapes and shadows. There are many levels, where objects poke out from behind the wall, a vast glass roof hints at the sheer scale of the set up and to a possibly more active area of the cave that points to what we see here as being an unintentionally curated museum. The nature of the plots would always combine a mix of humour and good vs. evil where weapons were dulled down because of the styling but there was unquestionably darkness in existence. The devil is in the detail again with this piece, I have combined funny touches with aggressive threats, the walls feature slurs against the characters and even a riddle from the Riddler
    1. Released: 2017
    2. Collection: Lost In Hollywood
    3. Specification: 1 of 1 original framed embellished canvas, hand signed by artist.
    4. Image Size: 48” x 36"
    5. Framed Size: 54” x 41"

Category: spo-default, spo-disabled

Type: Original Artwork

Commissions

When workload allows Mark embraces client commissions and has enjoyed amazing success to date. If you have been inspired by the work that you have seen and have a specific idea or simply a seed then please do get in touch.

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