"Pop artist gives an 'English' lesson"
By Jeff Theodore | Journal Arts Editor - Friday, November 02, 2007

If you have an aversion to being the subject of a painting, don't bother getting to know Ron English.

"It's known that if you're part of an artist's life, you'll become part of one of their paintings," says English, a celebrated painter who labels the controversial yet dynamic visuals he creates a version of social commentary called "Popaganda."

When the longtime Jersey City artist, who once had a studio in the now defunct 111 First St. building, had his own kids they didn't stand a chance. They were instantly recruited as models for his work.

Now, wherever English's children, Zephyr, 12, and Mars, 9, go they're also known as "Kiss Kids." Several visuals in English's new book, "Son Of Pop: Ron English Paints His Progeny," ($35, 9 MM Books), depict English's children as members of Kiss, one of English's favorite bands.

"Pop," already in bookstores, is one of two books in which English has compiled his work. The other one, "Abject Expressionism," ($50, Last Gasp Publishing), a retrospective of his artistic career, hits bookshelves next month.

English says his children, although sometimes begrudingly, went along with the program of being a part of daddy's work.

"As they got older they started to understand the process," English says. "I would say, 'Hey, Mars, I want you to look really pensive' and he would do it. However, I do think it's annoying to him because he'd rather be playing video games. My daughter, Zehphyr, however, seems more interested."

Since English himself was a child growing up in a rural Illinois town, he says he's known art would be his lifelong calling.

"I remember being a 4-year-old and having this dream of a stupid bridge in my hometown collasping," he says. "In the dream, I'm an old man who's crossing the bridge in a car with eight paintings in the back seat. I'm thinking that I'm going to die, but more so that those paintings are going to die, too."

English says his mother was an adept painter, too, but hid her passion for it.

"She would throw her art away in the garbage," he says. "My father, I guess, didn't want her doing that kind of stuff. But, it was good. There was this weird prejudice against art."

English has taken heat and found himself in sketchy circumstances for transforming commercial billboards into socio-political messages. McDonald's, for one, has been in the line of fire of English's wrath. English's Ronald "McSupersize" paintings got prominent play in the popular documentary "Super Size Me."

English says his mother was an adept painter, too, but hid her passion for it.

"She would throw her art away in the garbage," he says. "My father, I guess, didn't want her doing that kind of stuff. But, it was good. There was this weird prejudice against art."

English has taken heat and found himself in sketchy circumstances for transforming commercial billboards into socio-political messages. McDonald's, for one, has been in the line of fire of English's wrath. English's Ronald "McSupersize" paintings got prominent play in the popular documentary "Super Size Me."

"I want to make art that has a political signifcance but isn't a political cartoon," he says. "My intent is for it to be more universal and less dogmatic."

English found his way to Jersey City after rents for studio and living space in New York City rose through the roof.

"It went from $4,000 to $12,000 a month," he says. "Since my wife and I had many good friends here and wanted to raise our kids in a nicer environment with parks, we decided to move here."

No matter where he's doing his art, English says it reaches many more eyes than ever before.

With the stakes so high, does that translate into bigger headaches?

"No, I love it," he says. "If I was an artist in 1959, I would have to be an abstract expressionist. Now, you can do whatever you want. Now, I can be Ron English and absorb everything."