World of Wonder Productions will exhibit the works of pre-eminent artist Mathu Andersen at its Storefront Gallery on Thursday, November 13th. The Instagram Art of Mathu Andersen will be Andersen’s first solo show after building a large following online to critical acclaim. Resonating through Andersen’s work are themes of vanity along with challenges to societal notions of gender.
“Mathu’s self-portraits take the selfie to new heights. They crash through the vanity of social media to create works that challenge our idea of beauty.” –Fenton Bailey, World of Wonder Co-Founder
Photographer Mathu Andersen is creative producer on RuPaul’s Drag Race, and RuPaul’s personal hair and makeup artist. Who best to help host the festivities, but RuPaul himself. RuPaul will be the special celebrity guest host for the evening, a living breathing piece of Andersen’s art work. Andersen was recently featured on Instagram for his skeletal Halloween post, which was “liked” by nearly half a million people. Andersen’s unique and authentic portraits divert from the norm and have gained international attention.
“His bestiary of Gormenghast-like self portraits manage to combine dazzling spectacle of the most grandiose kind with incredible intimacy and vulnerability.” – Fenton Bailey, World of Wonder Co-Founder
World of Wonder’s Storefront Gallery originally opened in 2007 to showcase the works of artists in film and television, and became a home to Pop Art. Located two blocks east of world-famous Hollywood & Highland, the Gallery is a place where both high and low cultures collide. Past exhibitions include Dial M for Madonna, Rupaul’s Drag Race Art Show, Dolly Parton Pop, Golden Girls Gone Wild, and most recentlySham of Hollywood. Its bold and boundary-breaking exhibitions have been featured in the LA Times, NY Daily News, UK Daily Mirror, Us Weekly, Art US, MTV, Fox News, TMZ, E! Online, Perez Hilton, Reuters and Yahoo News.
“The fact is that those who use their bodies as a canvas are serious artists in the same way that painters and sculptors are. We are so proud at the World of Wonder Storefront Galley to exhibit Mathu Andersen’s first solo show. Mathu has been selfless in sharing himself with his fans on social media. We believe these portraits deserve an up-close look in person.” –Randy Barbato,World of Wonder Co-Founder
ABOUT MATHU ANDERSEN
Originally from Australia, Mathu Andersen has a background in fashion and textile design. After moving to New York in 1986, he teamed up with Zaldy Goco and became a fixture of NYC nightlife. Andersen has worked with photographers including Francesco Scavullo, Steven Meisel, Steven Klein, Annie Leibovitz, Deborah Turbeville, and Ellen von Unwerth. His work has been featured in major publications such as Vogue, Harper’s, Glamour, Allure, and Cosmopolitan. Andersen has also photographed Dita Von Teese, Kelly Osbourne, Elvira Mistress of the Dark, RuPaul, La Toya Jackson, Pamela Anderson, Nicole Richie Khloe Kardashian, Neil Patrick Harris, Paula Abdul and Leah Remni. Andersen moved to Los Angeles in 2002 and after a successful career working in music videos joined Project Runway andRuPaul’s Drag Race.
ABOUT WORLD OF WONDER
Innovative production company World of Wonder is behind such entertaining hit series as RuPaul’s Drag Race (Logo), Million Dollar Listing(Bravo), #CandidlyNicole (Vh1), Big Freedia (Fuse), Life With La Toya (OWN), and Island Hunters (HGTV). World of Wonder has also created award-winning films and documentaries such as Inside Deep Throat, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Party Monster, Monica in Black and White, and The Last Beekeeper. Seven of their films have premiered at the Sundance Film festival including Becoming Chaz and Party Monster, the documentary and feature film starring Macaulay Culkin. The company has produced cutting-edge fiction and non-fiction programming for HBO, Showtime, VH1, IFC, Discovery, MTV, E! Entertainment, Oxygen, BBC, PBS, Channel 4 UK, and other digital outlets that can be found online at worldofwonder.net.
Andersen’s self-portraits will be available to purchase for the first time ever at World of Wonder’s Storefront Gallery. The event on Thursday, November 13th is by invitation only, please contact kellykpr@yahoo.com for more details.
