Charlie Smith
MALAGA Town Hall has announced a new pop art exhibition at the Centre for Contemporary Art (CAC), amid a management crisis.
The venue, which has recently seen a takeover by the Council, is set to host the event from mid-May to the end of June.
American painter Mark Ryden, a prolific figure of the 1970s Pop Surrealist movement, is one of dozens of international talents to be exhibited at the show.
Known as ‘the godfather of pop surrealism’, his mysterious work draws on everything from 17th century French literature, to old toys, and even meat.
Not one to be confined by medium, Ryden also produced an album, The Gay Nineties Old Tyme Music (2004), featuring Tyler The Creator, Katy Perry and Nick Cave, among others.
Ryden, whose previous CAC exhibition was the most popular ever at the gallery, with 102,800 visitors, will be joined by KAWS, James Jarvis, Erik Parker, Hajime Sorayama and more.
One of the main highlights of the show will be work by London-born Jarvis, an illustrator, toy designer and pioneer of the soft vinyl designer toy revolution.
It comes after a row broke at the CAC, as 17 staff from its Oleo restaurant were sacked, while 22 workers have denounced the Town Hall over contract disputes.
A Town Hall takeover prompted employees to issue a joint statement, in which they accuse city chiefs of ‘violating their rights’ by leaving them out of contract negotiations.
