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Three paintings side by side. The first is a line drawing of a figure with a red heart for a face and a blue striped shirt. The second is a portrait of a person with blue eyes, flanked by a yellow skull and a white balloon. The third is a stylised face with a large red cross over the features.

Art: Jean-Charles de Castelbajac proves he doesn't just make teddy-bear dresses

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Date
8 August 2013

Perhaps better known for dressing Lady Gaga in a suit made entirely of plush Kermit the Frog teddy-bears, French designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac is also a talented artist, whose work was recently shown at the regrettably quite inaccessible Eden Rock Gallery in Saint Barthélemy. Luckily for those of you who don’t reside in Saint Barths, however, the whole exhibition was brilliantly digitised by the gallery, and can be viewed almost in its entirety online.

His paintings (like his clothes) favour primary colours, pop culture references and thick, divisive black lines, creating the emphatic and altogether playful character which pervades his work. Abstract and funny, it’s difficult not to find charm in his depictions of well known cartoon characters, striped shirt-clad chaps and his portraits.

An illustration of a stylised figure with a large red heart covering their face. They have bright yellow hair, small green wings, and wear a blue and white striped shirt.
Above

Jean-Charles de Castelbajac

A painting of a face outlined in thick black lines, set against a background of green, white and red. A green paintbrush is laid across the face, with a drip of paint running down from the bristles.
Above

Jean-Charles de Castelbajac: Donna Bandiera

A mixed-media painting featuring a large yellow “safety jacket” and a red fire extinguisher. The extinguisher is labelled “firbuster” and “emergency” with a white cross in the centre. Hand-drawn sketches and text, including “this is a wonderfull book!”, are scattered across the background.
Above

Jean-Charles de Castelbajac: Jean-Charles de Castelbajac: Portrait of HappyCult

A painting of a stylised face outlined in black on a white background. A bold red cross is painted over the centre, with two red eyes visible beneath the paint.
Above

Jean-Charles de Castelbajac: Hollygan

A painting of a person with blue eyes and dark hair, set against a vibrant red and blue background. A yellow skull and a white skull flank the figure, with a black silhouette of a bird perched above.
Above

Jean-Charles de Castelbajac: Portrait of HappyCult

A mixed-media collage on a bright yellow background. It features a stylised monkey with a blue circle over its mouth and a cropped portrait of a person with a red circle over theirs. Hand-drawn text at the bottom reads “GLAMOROUS GLENNIS”.
Above

Jean-Charles de Castelbajac: Donna Bandiera

A painting of Charlie Brown with a sad expression, his face split between bright yellow and white. A single black tear streaks down his cheek against a deep blue background.
Above

Jean-Charles de Castebajac: Blanket (to JBC)

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About the Author

Maisie Skidmore

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Maisie joined It’s Nice That fresh out of university in the summer of 2013 as an intern before joining full time as an Assistant Editor. Maisie left It’s Nice That in July 2015.

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