Travis Fish
Me and My Uncle

10.12.2021 — 02.01.2022
Jordan/Paris, 2021, Acrylic on canvas, 96 × 80 in (243.8 × 203.2 cm)
(left) Queen of Hearts, 2021, Acrylic on Canvas, 52h × 48w in (132.08h × 121.92w cm); (right) Jack of Hearts, 2021, Acrylic on Canvas, 52h × 48w in (132.08h × 121.92w cm)
Fendi Vertigo, 2021, Acrylic on canvas, 78h × 70w in (198.12h × 177.80w cm)
New York/Supreme, 2021, Acrylic on canvas, 96h × 80w in (243.84h × 203.20w cm)
TRAVIS FISH, JORDAN/PARIS, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 96h × 80w in. (243.84h × 203.20w cm)
Jordan/Paris, 2021 (detail)
TRAVIS FISH, I (LOVE) NY, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 52h × 48w in. (132.08h × 121.92w cm)
TRAVIS FISH, COMME DES GARÇON KNIT, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 70h × 64w in (177.80h × 162.56w cm)
TRAVIS FISH, BRAINARD/LOEWE, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 70h × 64w in. (177.80h × 162.56w cm)
TRAVIS FISH, CHESS NOT CHECKERS (ROWING BLAZERS), 2021, acrylic and oil on canvas, 70h × 64w in. (177.80h × 162.56w cm)
TRAVIS FISH, DOIG/DIOR, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 70h × 64w in. (177.80h × 162.56w cm)
TRAVIS FISH, FENDI VERTIGO, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 78h × 70w in. (198.12h × 177.80w cm)
TRAVIS FISH, BANDANA SUPREME, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 52h × 48w in. (132.08h × 121.92w cm)
TRAVIS FISH, QUEEN OF HEARTS, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 52h × 48w in. (132.08h × 121.92w cm)
Queen of Hearts, 2021 (Detail)
TRAVIS FISH, JACK OF HEARTS, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 52h × 48w in. (132.08h × 121.92w cm)
TRAVIS FISH, MINI, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 70 × 64 in. (177.8 × 162.5 cm)

Exhibition Text

Carl Kostyál Stockholm is pleased to present ‘Me and My Uncle’, Travis Fish’s debut solo exhibition with the gallery.

Defining himself as a ‘sweater-obsessed’, Fish paints branded sweaters, sport hoodies and caricature portraits of celebrities. Whimsical and distorted, his large-scale acrylic paintings often evoke the fabric of garments, playing on the intersection between art and fashion. 

Interested in the way this specific item of clothing functions in society and often appropriating paintings by other artists of his generation as signifiers, the sweaters and hoodies he chooses are not random. Peter Doig’s paintings turned into sweaters for the Dior Autumn/Winter 2021 Collection, Supreme’s signature embroidered cap made into a jumper, Jeremy Scott’s Pikachu sweater worn by Offset and Jonas Wood’s famous basketball hoodie feature, among other subjects. Travis’s paintings isolate high fashion versions of this item of clothing made by popular brands such as Moncler, Kappa, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Hard Rock, Versace and Fendi, into a subject worth of portraiture. Travis Fish playfully but meaningfully monumentalises and transforms them into icons in their own right.  

“The hoodie tells many stories that define our times – tales of social inequality, youth culture, subculture, police brutality, racism, privacy, fear and, in turn, style. It is now, arguably, western fashion’s last truly political garment – a garment that can incite fear, jealousy, camaraderie and even fury in others – as well as being a garment you can lose your life by wearing.” – Lou Stoppard, Curator of THE (HOODIE) at Het Nieuwe Instituut 

Travis Fish (b.1989, Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin) lives and works in Los Angeles. He holds a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. 

Recent exhibitions include: Photocopy Breakfast, Gana Art, Seoul, 2021; *JUMPERS*, Alex Duve, Berlin, 2020; Malmö Sessions, Carl Kostyál, Sweden, 2019; Stockholm Dinner Sessions, Carl Kostyál, Stockholm, 2019;; Dash by Travis Fish, Superzoom, M Building-Wynwood Art District, Miami, 2019; Live, Laugh, Love, Y2K group, New York, 2019; THE (HOODIE) at Het Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam, Netherlands, 2019-2020; Wide World of Sports, Eric Firestone Gallery, East Hampton, New York, 2019. 

Travis Fish was an artist-in-residence at the Carl Kostyál Invitational Artist Residency at Mohilef Studios, Los Angeles from September to November 2021.

 

Photo: Viktor Fordell; ©the artist. Courtesy of Carl Kostyál