Kill Your Darlings is Kid Acne’s (b.1978) first solo exhibition in Sheffield, where he has lived and works for the last 15 years. Kid Acne has exhibited widely, both in the UK and internationally, including StolenSpace, London, Iguapop, Barcelona, Spain, Myymälä 2, Helsinki, Finland, Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts, Western Australia, and Fredericks & Freiser Gallery, New York, USA. His latest exhibition, opening at Millennium Gallery on the 21 July, Kill Your Darlings will feature work from throughout Kid Acne’s career alongside a series of new commissions.
Kill Your Darlings is a motto used by writers to describe the painful process of cutting cherished characters or scenes which don’t serve their overall story. Revisiting some of the iconic creations which have helped to establish Kid Acne’s international reputation, the show will celebrate the DIY ethic and often transitory approach he has refined over the years. Murals, illustrations and sculpture will trace the development of his work and show how he has carried the wit and subversion from his days as a graffiti artist and fanzine creator through into adult life as a designer, artist and musician.
Showcasing the sheer diversity of Kid Acne’s work, Kill Your Darlings will feature comic books, record sleeves, flyers, fanzines, sketch books and screen prints, as well commercial commissions such as skateboard graphics, vinyl toys and porcelain figures. The exhibition will also debut a series of new work, including large scale sculptures, paintings and a live-action short film.
Kid Acne’s art career began with an appearance on Rolf’s Cartoon Club at the age of twelve. Within a year, he’d started writing graffiti inspired by its infinite scale, colour and immediacy. Alongside a small group of friends, he spent his teenage years making underground fanzines and releasing limited run 7”s on their Invisible Spies imprint. Applying the same DIY ethos to the rest of his output, his work can be seen throughout the globe – in wheatpastes and rap-sprays from New York to Azerbaijan. His signature style of illustrations has adorned products for the world’s leading brands, while the man himself continues to paint epic slogans in sub zero temperatures.
Kid Acne: Kill Your Darlings opens today and continues until 23 October.
A programme of events will accompany the exhibition.
For further information visit www.museums-sheffield.org.uk
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Images:
All courtesy the artist
