A Velvet Elvis is a

painting Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

velvet Weave details visible on a purple-colored velvet fabric Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are evenly distributed, with a short pile, giving it a distinctive soft feel. By extension, the word ''velvety'' means ...

. It typically represents a costumed torso of Elvis holding a

microphone A microphone, colloquially called a mic or mike (), is a transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, hearing aids, public address systems for concert halls and public ...

, painted on

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

(or velvet of some other dark color, such as

navy blue Navy blue is a very dark shade of the color blue. Navy blue got its name from the dark blue (contrasted with naval white) worn by officers in the Royal Navy since 1748 and subsequently adopted by other navies around the world. When this color n ...

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...

purple Purple is any of a variety of colors with hue between red and blue. In the RGB color model used in computer and television screens, purples are produced by mixing red and blue light. In the RYB color model historically used by painters, pu ...

). This iconic

velvet painting A velvet painting is a type of painting distinguished by the use of velvet (usually black velvet) as the support, in place of canvas, paper, or similar materials. The velvet provides an especially dark background against which colors stand out. ...

is considered an archetypical example of

kitsch Kitsch ( ; loanword from German) is a term applied to art and design that is perceived as naïve imitation, overly-eccentric, gratuitous, or of banal taste. The avant-garde opposed kitsch as melodramatic and superficial affiliation with ...

. A brief history of black velvet paintings is presented by Pamela Liflander in ''Black Velvet Artist'', a booklet published by

Running Press Running Press is an American publishing company and member of the Perseus Books Group. The publisher's offices are located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with many of the corporate functions taking place in Perseus' New York City headquarters. I ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

in 2003, and included in an art kit by the same name. Liflander also details the life of

Edgar Leeteg Edgar William Leeteg (April 13, 1904 East St. Louis, Illinois – February 7, 1953 Papeete, Tahiti) was an American painter often considered the father of American velvet painting. He immigrated to French Polynesia in 1933, where he spent the r ...

, "the father of American black velvet kitsch," whose "raucous and bawdy" life was previously captured by

James Michener James Albert Michener ( or ; February 3, 1907 – October 16, 1997) was an American writer. He wrote more than 40 books, most of which were long, fictional family sagas covering the lives of many generations in particular geographic locales and ...

in '' Rascals in Paradise'' (1957). Velvet was a popular medium for artists on the streets of

Tijuana Tijuana ( ,"Tijuana"
(US) and < ...

, reaching a height of popularity in the 1970s.

Cultural references

Songs

Songs directly about the paintings include: *"Velvet Elvis" by

STIR Stir, STIR, stirred, or stirrer may refer to: Art and entertainment * Stir (band), a music group from 1994-2005 * Stir (film), ''Stir'' (film), a 1980 Australian film directed by Stephen Wallace * Stir (TV series), ''Stir'' (TV series) * "Stirred" ...

*"Velvet Elvis" by

Dry Cell upLine art drawing of a dry cell: 1. brass cap, 2. plastic seal, 3. expansion space, 4. porous cardboard, 5. zinc can, 6. carbon rod, 7. chemical mixture A dry cell is a type of electric battery, commonly used for portable electrical devices. Un ...

*"Velvet Elvis" by

Ralston Bowles Ralston Bowles is an American poet, songwriter, producer, musician and singer from Grand Rapids, Michigan. Ralston Bowles was born on August 31, 1952 to parents, Buel Bowles of Green Sulphur Springs, West Virginia (1913–2002) and May Jean Mor ...

*" Black Velvet" by

Alannah Myles Alannah Myles (née Byles; born December 25, 1958) is a Canadian singer-songwriter who has won both a Grammy and a Juno Award for the song " Black Velvet". The song was a top-ten hit in Canada; it was also a number one hit on the US ''Billboar ...

*"Velvet Elvis" by

Alex Winston Alexandra Leigh Winston (born September 28, 1987) is an American indie music, indie pop rock singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Biography Alex Winston grew up just outside Detroit. She is classically tr ...

*"Velvet Elvis" by

"Weird Al" Yankovic Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, actor and author. He is best known for creating comedy songs that make light of pop culture and often parody specifi ...

, a whimsical ode to such a painting, in a

pastiche A pastiche is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking it ...

of the musical style of

The Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For most of their history the line-up consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion). The Police ...

*"Velvet Elvis" by

Adrenalin O.D. Adrenalin O.D. was an American hardcore punk band from New Jersey that existed from 1981 to 1990. They are best known for playing extremely fast music accompanied by humorous lyrics. History Adrenalin O.D. formed in October 1981, from the demis ...

*"Elvis" by Sister Hazel *"Elvis On Velvet" by the

Stray Cats Stray Cats are an American rockabilly band formed in 1979 by guitarist and vocalist Brian Setzer, double bassist Lee Rocker, and drummer Slim Jim Phantom in the Long Island town of Massapequa, New York. The group had numerous hit singles in t ...

, about the intense commercialization of Elvis following his death, suggesting that "The King" would find such items (particularly the paintings) disrespectful *"Velvet Elvis" by

Kacey Musgraves Kacey Lee Musgraves (born August 21, 1988) is an American country singer. She has won six Grammy Awards, seven Country Music Association Awards, and three Academy of Country Music Awards. Musgraves self-released three solo albums and one as Texa ...

*"Velvet Elvis" by

Pink Lincolns The Pink Lincolns are a punk rock band formed in Tampa, Florida in 1986 by vocalist Chris Barrows and guitarist Dorsey Martin. The rest of the lineup has frequently changed and currently includes bassist Kevin Coss and drummer Jeff Fox. The ban ...

*"Velvet Elvis" by

Cary Hudson Cary Hudson is an American lead singer, guitarist and main songwriter of the alternative country/Southern rock band Blue Mountain (band), Blue Mountain. Biography Hudson was born in the town of Sumrall, Mississippi, located approximately 15 m ...

Video games

*An entire level of the video game ''

Psychonauts ''Psychonauts'' is a 2005 platform video game developed by Double Fine Productions. The game was initially published by Majesco Entertainment and THQ for Microsoft Windows, Xbox and PlayStation 2. In 2011, Double Fine acquired the rights for t ...

'', known as ''Black Velvetopia'', is dedicated to such velvet paintings. *In the PC game ''

Fallout Nuclear fallout is the residual radioactive material propelled into the upper atmosphere following a nuclear blast, so called because it "falls out" of the sky after the explosion and the shock wave has passed. It commonly refers to the radioac ...

'', a Velvet Elvis portrait can be found in the crashed UFO encounter, on an alien skeleton. In its sequel, ''

Fallout 2 ''Fallout 2: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game'' is a 1998 role-playing video game developed by Black Isle Studios and published by Interplay Productions. It is a sequel to ''Fallout (video game), Fallout'' (1997), featuring similar graphics and ...

'', it can be found in several locations. This refers to the rumors and jokes that Elvis is still alive and living with aliens. *A Velvet Elvis can also be found in the PC game ''

Fountain of Dreams ''Fountain of Dreams'' is a 1990 role-playing video game developed and published by Electronic Arts for DOS as a successor to 1988's ''Wasteland''. Gameplay The gameplay is similar to that of ''Wasteland'' since ''Fountain of Dreams'' was or ...

'' in the Desoto's compound. It is the only type of painting that cannot be sold to Big Daddy for money.

Other

*
The Velvet Elvis
i''s a 2012 Amazon Studios Test Movie about a black Elvis impersonator/demon hunter who is forced to put down his guitar and pick up his gun when a string of murders threaten to unleash hell on earth. *

Hampshire College Hampshire College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. It was opened in 1970 as an experiment in alternative education, in association with four other colleges ...

students had a tradition regarding a Velvet Elvis which was to be stolen by successive students, who would display it in a common area in their homes from where it could be stolen again.Hampshire Myths and Legends
/ref> *''Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith'' is a book written by

Rob Bell Robert Holmes Bell Jr. (born August 23, 1970) is an American author, speaker and former pastor. Bell founded Mars Hill Bible Church in Grandville, Michigan, and pastored it until 2012. Under his leadership, Mars Hill was one of the fastest-g ...

Mars Hill Bible Church Mars Hill Bible Church is an American non-denominational Christian megachurch located in Grandville, Michigan near Grand Rapids. The teaching pastor was Rob Bell until December, 2011 when Bell transitioned into another ministry and was succeede ...

, inspired by a velvet Elvis painting in his garage. While in college as the lead singer of _ton bundle, he wrote a song called "Velvet Elvis", inspired by the same painting.

References

Visual arts genres Cultural depictions of Elvis Presley