Russell Young

Kate Moss Superstar is part of an ongoing exploration into the visual nature of fame and celebrity, as Young defines the essence of what truly makes a ‘superstar’. With his trademark vividly-colored, larger-than-life canvases, Young reinterprets iconic imagery of contemporary catwalk heroine, Kate Moss.

Kate Moss Superstar features a controversial photograph of Kate Moss, first published in British Vogue in early 1990, capturing the Croydon-born supermodel aged just sixteen. Taken by British photographer Kate Garner at the cusp of the nineties, this photograph reflects the very beginning of Moss’s stellar career. By embellishing and expanding upon the outtakes, Young weaves the image into his continuing exploration of the fragile nature of celebrity and its impact on both society at large and our shared internal psyche. Whilst the original image presents a natural innocence and beauty, it is through Young’s manipulation that these paintings are elevated, transcending the restrictions of their original source material and providing a unique and very personal body of work which pays a powerful homage to one of our generation’s most celebrated icons.