Bob Dylan

by John Elderfield

Bob Dylan has been a prolific graphic artist since the 1960s, and his graphic art is marked by the same constant drive for renewal that characterises his music. Never content to remain static in a single form of expression that he has already cultivated, he is constantly experimenting and testing new artistic techniques and expressions. This book of the exhibition at the National Gallery of Denmark encompasses some 100 works, including completely new works to be seen in public for the first time. Bob Dylan has recently delved into painting in acrylic, and the exhibition is the first to document this new direction in the artist's work, showing larger format paintings alongside drawings. Dylan's works are often created during his exhaustive touring, and his motifs bear corresponding imprints of the environments and people that he crosses in his life. As a graphic artist he functions as a phenomenal observer who depicts the immediately banal and everyday facets of life in such a way that they appear fresh and new for the viewer.

Genres: Music, Art

Hardcover

First published October 1, 2010

About the author

John Elderfield (25 April 1943 - ) was Chief Curator of Painting and Sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, from 2003 to 2008.

Elderfield studied the history of art at the University of Manchester and the University of Leeds. He received his PhD from the Courtauld Institute of Art in 1975.

Elderfield received the award of Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres from the French Government.

Reviews

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't really understand art, but I'm skeptical that the paintings in Dylan's "Brazil Series" are very good. Why is there so much brown? Many of the paintings might be photographs that he outlines and then paints in. The sketches seem better, to me. The way Dylan paints women--big, powerful, uncompromising and sometimes domineering--tends to be more interesting. The essays attached to this series read like rationalizations for showcasing a famous person's work. But what do I know?

[David Allen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Like an actor deluded into thinking he can sing well enough for an album, this master songwriter has been flattered into making his hobby public. Amateurish paintings, pretentious essays. He's in over his head and all concerned should be embarrassed. To quote a Dylan song: "Say that vanity got the best of him."

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I agree with the other guy, Bob's no painting genius.

But on the other hand he is a singing genius, and because of everything he is in the world we grew up in and the world we live in now, anything he does is fascinating. It's tempting to imagine that among other voices in his head, one was murmuring "easy money!"

He is almost as poor a painter as I am. That in itself makes my day.