Alex Arcadia (born January 5, 1976) is an American painter,

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

and conceptual artist. His self-titled

cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount (lexicographer), Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', and in 1731 taken up in ...

"Arcadia" provides the framework for his large scale paintings,

sculptures Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

and installations, which engage audiences as both post-Warholian

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

, and deviant in the readymade tradition of

Marcel Duchamp Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, , ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, and conceptual art. Duchamp is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Picasso ...

. Arcadia is best known for his "SuperGymnast" image, an erotically charged

goddess A goddess is a female deity. In many known cultures, goddesses are often linked with literal or metaphorical pregnancy or imagined feminine roles associated with how women and girls are perceived or expected to behave. This includes themes of s ...

and recurring central figure of power in his work. In the mid-1990s the SuperGymnast was planted by the tens of thousands throughout the streets of New York City as a tag, quickly making the

symbol A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different conc ...

synonymous with the identity of the artist. Arcadia debuted the SuperGymnast as sculpture atop his "Temple of Fame" (1999–2000). Artifacts from "Temple of Fame" were featured in his first New York City solo exhibition at Stefan

Stux Gallery Stux Gallery is a contemporary fine art dealership located on 520 West End Avenue on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York City. Artists represented/exhibited by the gallery have included Doug and Mike Starn, Vik Muniz, Andres Serrano, Dennis O ...

in 2001 entitled "SuperGymnast", reviewed in the ''New York Times''. Arcadia appears in filmmaker Ondi Timoner's 2007 documentary ''We Live In Public'', a film centered on the millennial art and performance event called ''Quiet'', which was produced by Arcadia's friend, collector, and internet figure Josh Harris, and took place in downtown

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

(1999–2000) during the last days of the dot-com boom. Alex Arcadia continues to define a new mythology he calls Bright Shiny Future (BSF). He lives and works in New York City.

References

1971 births American sculptors Living people {{US-sculptor-stub