What Art Would Justin Bieber Buy? A New Art Auction Curated by the Singer and His Wife Reveals His Tastes

You’ve likely been waiting, with
bated breath, for the answer to that eternal question: “What would
it look like if Justin Bieber curated an online charity art
auction?” Millions of prayers were answered today when Paddle8
launched a sale featuring 17 artworks personally selected by the
pop star and his wife Hailey.

Their taste? It’s heavy with
Pop-influenced street art from the likes of Fidia Falaschetti,
Patch Whisky, Buff Monster, Virgil Abloh, Greg Mike, Dalek, Pablo
Dona, Pref, OG Slick, Jason Zante, and Miss Zukie.

Abloh’s piece is actually two
pieces. He has made something called a Clear Case (2019), which is basically a floating picture
frame. “Designed and conceptualized by Virgil Abloh, the Clear
Canvas is a modern interpretation of artwork display, an artwork
worthy of display in and of itself. Each display case is editioned
1-100, and comes with a Certificate of Authenticity,” the auction’s
website says. Inside “Clear Case” Abloh has placed
House Cat (2019), a silhouette of Felix the
Cat.

Other pieces include an orb made of Japanese pencil-top erasers
shaped like desserts by Argentinian artist Pablo Dona; a vinyl toy
of a square character with its mouth agape, holding a sign that
says “Live Loud,” by Greg Mike; and a triptych of digitally painted
roses on canvas by Jason Zante.

The auction is for a good cause:
a portion of the proceeds will go to Inner-City Arts, an L.A.-based
organization that brings arts classes to underserved children, and
to LIFT Los Angeles, whose goal is to “break the cycle of poverty”
by coaching underprivileged families through tough times, helping
them find educational opportunities and jobs. 

Justin Bieber is no stranger to
art-making himself, of course. He was filmed spray painting a
Canadian flag and a pot leaf on a wall in Bogotá in 2013. (Local
artists immediately painted over it.) A bunch of Bieber-attributed
graffiti pieces, including a toothy monster, a penguin, and a
monkey with earrings popped up on the side of a building in Buenos
Aires soon after. And he’s collaborated with more established
talent; his 2015 album Purpose boasts a cover by Los Angeles street artist
RETNA. Bieber also hosted a pop-up at Art Basel Hong Kong earlier
this year, and is a collector of Takashi Murakami and KAWS. And
even the rarified, blue-chip art world seems to have a soft spot
for the singer; Elizabeth Peyton painted a dreamy portrait of
Bieber back in 2013.

The post What Art Would Justin Bieber Buy? A New Art Auction
Curated by the Singer and His Wife Reveals His Tastes appeared
first on artnet News.