Mark Ryden
Medford, 1963Biography
Blending themes of pop culture with techniques reminiscent of the old masters, Mark Ryden has created a singular style that blurs the traditional boundaries between high and low art. His work first garnered attention in the 1990s when he ushered in a new genre of painting, “Pop Surrealism”, dragging a host of followers in his wake. Ryden has trumped the initial surrealist strategies by choosing subject matter loaded with cultural connotation.
Ryden’s vocabulary ranges from cryptic to cute, treading a fine line between nostalgic cliché and disturbing archetype. Seduced by his infinitely detailed and meticulously glazed surfaces, the viewer is confronted with the juxtaposition of childhood innocence with the mysterious recesses of the soul. A subtle disquiet inhabits his paintings; the work is achingly beautiful as it hints at darker psychic stuff beneath the surface of cultural kitsch. In Ryden’s world, cherubic girls elbow up against strange and mysterious figures. Ornately carved frames lend the paintings a baroque exuberance that adds gravity to their enigmatic themes.
Mark Ryden graduated from Pasadena’s Art Center College of Design in 1987 with a Bachelor in Fine Arts. His paintings have been shown in museums and galleries worldwide, including a career-spanning retrospective Cámara de las maravillas at the Centro de Arte Contemporáneo in Málaga, as well as an earlier retrospective “Wondertoonel” at the Frye Museum of Art in Seattle and Pasadena Museum of California Art.
Mark Ryden currently lives and works in Portland, Oregon.
Works
Aurora
offset lithograph
2016
99 x 54 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
Awakening the Moon
offset lithograph
2014
97 x 64 cm
Edition AP 50
Price on request
Christina Ricci
lithograph
2005
61 x 41 cm
Edition 200
Price on request
Fur Girl
offset lithograph
2009
84 x 59 cm
Edition AP 50
Price on request
Grotto of the Old Mess
offset lithograph
2010
28 x 35 cm
Edition 50
Price on request
Incarnation
offset lithograph
2010
94 x 66 cm
Edition AP 50
Price on request
Life is Beautiful
offset lithograph
2017
41 x 36 cm
Edition AP 50
Price on request
Long Yak
offset lithograph
2010
28 x 35 cm
Edition 50
Price on request
Magic Circus
offset lithograph
2018
68 x 98 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
Pet Yak Walk
offset lithograph
2010
35 x 28 cm
Edition 50
Price on request
Pinxit
book
2016
32 x 24 cm
Price on request
Queen Bee
offset lithograph
2016
84 x 60 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
Princess Praline
offset lithograph
2017
33 x 99 cm
Edition 1000
Price on request
Rosie’s Tea Party
offset lithograph
2006
72 x 77 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
Santa Worm
offset lithograph
2018
25 x 30 cm
Edition 999
Price on request
Special Yak
lithograph
2010
37 x 28 cm
Edition 250
Price on request
The Creatix
offset lithograph
2005
100 x 65 cm
Edition 200
Price on request
The Parlor
offset lithograph
2014
99 x 66 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
The Pumpkin President
offset lithograph
2008
64 x 84 cm
Edition AP 30
Price on request
Tree of Life
offset lithograph
2010
94 x 66 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
Yak Dream
graphite on paper
2008
32 x 24 cm
Price on request
Yoshi – The Forest Spirit
offset lithograph
2011
49 x 59 cm
Edition 1000
Price on request
General Sherman
offset lithograph
2007
100 x 42 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
Bee
offset lithograph
2020
45 x 45 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
Fur Girl
offset lithograph
2010
35 x 28 cm
Edition 50
Price on request
Snow Yak
offset lithograph
2010
28 x 35 cm
Edition 50
Price on request
Abominable
offset lithograph
2010
35 x 28 cm
Edition 50
Price on request
Girl in a Fur Skirt
offset lithograph
2010
35 x 28 cm
Edition 50
Price on request
Sophia’s Bubbles
offset lithograph
2010
28 x 35 cm
Edition 50
Price on request
Girl sleeping on Yak
offset lithograph
2020
28 x 35 cm
Edition 50
Price on request
Yuki the Young Yak
offset lithograph
2021
50 x 45 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
The Pink Pop
offset lithograph
2022
66 x 88 cm
Edition 1000
Price on request
Creatura
offset lithograph
2025
46 x 97 cm
Edition 500
Price on request
Exhibitions
