Rune Christensen is an artist from Denmark that has something sinister up his sweater sleeve. This self-taught street artist was born in Jutland, Denmark, but draws inspiration from colors, patterns and hand-crafts he has encountered around the globe. His centered figures on neutral backgrounds with intricately detailed costumes also draw from a rich tradition of Dutch portraiture and sleek Scandinavian design. Rune’s figures appear to be participating in mysterious rituals, and are thoroughly uninterested in the viewer.
The artist DESCRIBES THEM as “half religious icons half extras in a music video from the band Fever Ray.”
Christensen’s figures suggest a turn towards a secular form of spirituality that draws from cultural and religious traditions as well as from current events. They are sinister, ominous and spiritual, their gaze is disengaged, their skin is doubly covered with the pattern-work of intricately knit garments and delicately cryptic tattoos. Rune works across the mediums of painting, drawing, and large scale street art with murals appearing in Otavalo, Ecuador and La Paz, Bolivia.
Rune currently has work on view at the Joseph Gross Gallery in New York. Be sure to check out his website and instagram for more spectacular art.
