If you've seen the mural on Montauk's Surf Lodge or attended an exhibition at Eric Firestone Gallery in East Hampton, you may be familiar with Jen Stark's colorful art that features wavy bands that channels psychedelia. This Sunday, Jen Stark's art will get widespread attention when her art appears on MTV's 32nd Video Music Awards, airing live on August 30, 2015. Stark was invited to create original animations, artwork for the stage along with advance promotional material for the awards show, hosted this year by Miley Cyrus.
All of the original artwork created for MTV's Video Music Award ceremony features Jen Stark's recognizable drip designs.
"These free-form organic lines cascading downward in rainbow gradient, punchy primary, and graphic grey-toned hues act as a poetic and playful base for each artistic contribution to the show," explained Eric Firestone. "In some animations for the show, Stark reimagined her wormhole motif, a staple of both her two-dimensional and sculptural work, on an infinite loop."
Jen Stark was tapped to supply original art after being introduced to Miley Cyrus by Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips. Simultaneously, MTV producers were considering Stark's art for the awards show but the meeting of minds made for an easier choice, according to the gallery. Stark's bold psychedelic art were a match for Cyrus's bold and bohemian personality and the deal was cinched.
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Jen Stark art with Miley Cyrus in center. Courtesy Eric Firestone Gallery.
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For the MTV Video Music Awards, Jen Stark reimagined the show's visual identity and transformed it into a color filled world of exploration. An early teaser video portrays a colorful wormhole as tunnel for a floating space suit-clad Miley Cyrus. In other promotional material, Cyrus poses playfully in front of Stark's dripping designs.
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Jen Stark art as background for a floating Miley Cyrus. Courtesy Eric Firestone Gallery.
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Taking to the streets of Los Angeles, Stark has hand-painted monumental billboards portraying Miley Cyrus licking a moonman on a meltdown background. Closer to home, videos with Stark's art will be projected on billboards in Time Square and Port Authority in New York City.
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A hand painted billboard created for Los Angeles installed at the intersection of Hollywood & Vine. Courtesy Eric Firestone Gallery.
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For the polished precision of her animations for the show, Stark worked with David Lewandowski, director and animation artist known for his bizarrely humorous meme-prone videos. Watch for Stark's animations throughout the show, beginning with a customized MTV logo envisioned as a candy-colored meltdown, and as Cyrus makes her dramatic entrance as host for the awards show, sliding down one of Stark's trippy, drippy rainbow wormholes, seemingly from another dimension, according to Eric Firestone Gallery.
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Stark's intricate psychedelic paintings and drawings have steadily garnered significant national attention for Stark. Hailing from Miami, Stark has exhibited globally with major shows in NYC, Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, Thailand and Canada. Her work is included in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the West Collection, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale and MOCA Miami among others. Jen Stark is represented by Eric Firestone Gallery in The Hamptons.
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Interior detail of Cosmic Shift, 2015 by Jen Stark. Photo by Pat Rogers.
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Cosmic Shift by Jen Stark, 2015. Hand cut acid free colored paper, foam board, glue, acrylic, wood, varnish. 25 x 27 x 24 inches. Photo by Pat Rogers.
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In July 2015, Jen Stark's artwork appeared on the cover of Cosmopolitan magazine. Stark's drippy large-scale murals have been commissioned across the United States. In recent years, Stark completed major commissions for Miami International Airport and Facebook's headquarters in Menlo Park, California.
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"Meltdown" by Jen Stark at Miami International Airport
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In The Hamptons, Stark was the first artist in residency at the Surf Lodge creating an outdoor mural painted on the building which still remains on view. Her solo show revealing work made at the Surf Lodge was the subject of a solo show in June 2015. Her work was also included in a simultaneous group show, "Womanhouse" held at Eric Firestone Gallery from May 23 - June 14, 2015 at the East Hampton gallery on Newtown Lane.
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Installation shot of outdoor mural by Jen Stark. Photo: Alex DeJulio.
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"Hole" by Jen Stark, 2015. Felt, wood and monofilament, 33 x 33 x 96 inches, installed at the gallery at the Surf Lodge.
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BASIC FACTS: The 32nd Annual MTV Video Music Awards will be broadcast live on August 30, 2015 at 9 p.m. on MTV. www.mtv.com.
Jen Stark is represented by Eric Firestone Gallery, 4 Newtown Lane, East Hampton, NY 11937. www.ericfirestonegallery.com. For inquiries, email [email protected].
To see Jen Stark's art, visit www.jenstark.com.
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