Depop and Cartoon Network (CN) to unveil Exhibition Two, an exhibition by artist Slumpy Kev at Art Basel Miami. The showcase will feature a series of eight life-size sculptures, paintings and prints featuring Cartoon Network characters from the early 2000s, including The Powerpuff Girls, Ed, Edd & Eddy, and Courage the Cowardly Dog, as well as a collection of limited-edition merchandise inspired by the exhibition, available on the artist's Depop shop @slumpykev. To coincide with the opening of Exhibition Two, Cartoon Network will announce the founding and launch of an ‘Artist in Residence' program, with Slumpy Kev as their first recipient.
"My art is about making something inaccessible feel accessible allowing people to join a community they couldn't be a part of normally," says the Artist. This exhibition is a nostalgic playroom, inspired by the journey it took to get to this point in my career. These characters influenced my personality and I'm most excited to show my supporters how versatile I am."
The 21-year-old artist and Queens native, also known as Kevin Rosa, began his journey with art in 2017 through brightly-colored, hand-painted recreations of his childhood favorite cartoons on clothing and found objects. He joined the fashion marketplace app Depop soon after, not only to share and sell his work with a broader, like-minded creative audience but to connect with a community that could empower and support his art career. In February 2019, Depop sponsored his first public exhibition during Frieze LA to showcase Slump Kev's art to fans and followers.
"Depop is a platform which is for fostering and supporting the next generation of creatives that are transforming fashion. We're constantly looking for new ways to champion and help our community realize their ambitions – and this exhibition with Kev is a great example of what we seek to do at scale every day," says Peter Semple, Chief Marketing Officer at Depop. "Our relationship with Kev began as one based on his fashion output, and we're really proud to be able to continue supporting him as he takes this next step in his artistic career: on the Art Basel stage and with Cartoon Network – who he's always been inspired by."
Cartoon Network engages youth creatives at the intersection of creativity and technology to inspire and empower the next generation of creators. Over the course of the past decade, CN has launched a series of character-driven partnerships with emerging designers and artists to provide the youth of today with hands-on experiences that build their creativity. As the first recipient of the Artist in Residence program, Slumpy Kev will take part in a year-long residence complete with support, exposure and development opportunities via CN.