Good ol’ Boy 1989

Editor: We’re looking at Mark Kostabi’s "Good ol’ Boy," from 1989, an acrylic painting. The figures, so starkly rendered in black and white, give off a feeling of anonymity, like players on some otherworldly stage. I’m particularly drawn to how the background shapes interact with the figures, creating a real sense of depth, but…what do you make of it all? Curator: Oh, it pulls you in, doesn't it? Kostabi, he was a real character himself, right in the thick of the late 80s New York art scene. For me, there’s always this slightly unsettling sense of detachment in his work, emphasized by the faceless figures. They're there, grouped together, but seem utterly isolated, almost robotic. Notice the hard edges of the cones compared to the soft rendering of the bodies... Do you think that’s deliberate? Editor: Definitely. It's a sharp contrast. Maybe that disconnect represents the growing alienation within society, everyone grouped, but ultimately alone? Curator: Precisely. And those sharp geometric shapes in the background? To me they add a sort of oppressive feeling, like silent, watchful sentinels. The uniformity is striking, though also, the geometric rendering also provides order to chaos. So, the question becomes, does it imprison or protect the group? Editor: I never thought about it like that... That the figures have freedom because of the background's constraints? I'm looking at this work in a completely different way now. Curator: Isn't it wonderful how a single painting can lead to such a discussion? And ultimately, no interpretation is wrong, that is something Kostabi himself would relish in hearing.