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David Bowie to be immortalised in Neon by Louis Sidoli at the Halcyon Gallery

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Celebrated British artist Louis Sidoli is paying homage to the golden years of the Thin White Duke with his latest solo exhibition of original neon art. Hosted by Castle Fine Art, the exhibition will be launched with a private event at the Halcyon Gallery this Thursday (September 22), before being opened to the public the following day and over the subsequent weekend (September 23 – 25).

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Born from the artist’s longstanding admiration of the late, great David Bowie, the aptly titled “Neon” celebrates the pop icon’s artistic journey from 1970-1980. This was a prolific period for Bowie, during which he produced over 10 seminal albums, including classic records such as the iconic “Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars,” and the still oddly futuristic sounding “Low.” From performing as Ziggy during the glam years to his famed new romantic Ashes to Ashes photo shoot, each piece of artwork reimagines iconic moments in Bowie’s career in a fusion of aluminium and neon.

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Containing approximately 180 individual components and taking between four-six weeks to create, each work started life as a pencil sketch, before being accentuated with computer aided design, metallurgy, engineering, carpentry and neon glass making before the pieces reached the gallery walls. Sidoli has carved himself a new niche in contemporary pop art as the only UK artist to combine text, imagery and neon elements in this way. Many of his pieces also contain hidden symbolism in the layers of imagery.

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Inspired by popular culture in all its forms, Sidoli places a special emphasis on Bowie as a pop icon, crediting the release of his 1971 album “Hunky Dory” as a defining moment in his own development as an artist. He explains: “It was the track Andy Warhol on this album that from an early age, first ignited my curiosity and love of the pop art movement. It’s fair to say that without this album, I might not have become an artist. Today my work takes pop culture references from a variety of different sources such as newspapers, memorabilia and public records, to create artworks that are iconic and accessible.”

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In addition to symbols of mass culture, 15 years spent working as a designer in the car industry also heavily influenced Sidoli’s style. His commercial experience working for brands including BMW, Mini and Land Rover formed a key building block for his artistic future, with the engineering and craftsmanship in his work being a direct result of his product design background. After making a name for himself as a rising star of the contemporary art world, he was signed to the UK’s leading fine art publisher, Washington Green Fine Art, in 2007. His work has since been the subject of over 50 solo and group exhibitions throughout the UK and USA and is owned by collectors worldwide, including high profile personalities such as Liam Gallagher, Ozzy Osbourne and Henry Holland.

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Glyn Washington, Founder and Director of Washington Green, which owns the Castle Fine Art network throughout the UK, said of his client and his work: “Louis Sidoli is a unique talent who likes to provoke thought and reaction in his work. His distinctive style is evolving the genre that began with Andy Warhol, as he carries on the Pop Art legacy through the experimental use of new materials and techniques. While pop culture references are plentiful throughout Sidoli’s work, David Bowie remains the most enduring influence and reoccurring icon within his work. This ground-breaking new exhibition sees Sidoli craft a visual tribute to Bowie using neon as his medium.”

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