Katy Perry painting to go on show at National Portrait Gallery in DC
Portrait painter said he was drawn to Perry's 'pop culture iconography'
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A portrait of Katy Perry dressed as a cupcake is to go on show at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC.
Painted by New York-based artist Will Cotton, the tongue-in-cheek “Cupcake Katy” will go on show from 18 June.
The artist, who previously collaborated with the singer for the cover of her 2010 album Teenage Dream, said he does not normally paint celebrities but made an exception for Perry.
“The thing about painting celebrity in general is that there’s this chance they can just completely take over the picture,” he told the Smithsonian Magazine.
“But Katy had this kind of pop culture iconography that just seemed to me to fit into the kind of things I was interested in painting about,” he said.
Asked why he thought the gallery had decided to hang her portrait now, an honour usually reserved for later on in an entertainer’s career, he said: “It’s a question of cultural relevance. It seems like that must consider her to be important enough as an American to be part of the collection.”
Defending the decision to hang the pop star’s portrait in the prestigious gallery, Kim Sajet, the museum’s director, told the Associates Press: “Perry comes from a tradition of strong women entertainers who challenge their supposedly superficial pop personas…on closer look, Perry is a complex figure.”
The portrait will go on show later this month to coincide with a concert by Perry at DC’s Verizon Centre as part of her Prismatic world tour.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments