Breakfast In America 2015

Dave Macdowell made this painting, “Breakfast In America,” sometime in the 20th century, using bright, unapologetic colours and a chaotic composition. You can tell from the way he builds up the paint, thick in some areas and thin in others, that he’s really enjoying the process. It's like he's not afraid to let the paint do its thing, and that gives the piece a raw, almost visceral energy. Look at the way he renders the figures; they're cartoonish, grotesque, and yet somehow endearing. The layering of pop-cultural references—In-N-Out Burger, Porky Pig—creates this hyper-real, almost nightmarish vision of Americana. The ‘Cociane Whores’ sign is so brash it’s almost comical. The thick application of paint gives it all a tangible, in-your-face quality. It's like R. Crumb meets Basquiat, a collision of lowbrow and high art that somehow manages to be both disturbing and hilarious. Like Lisa Yuskavage, Macdowell isn’t afraid of the taboo. I think this piece is about more than meets the eye.