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Mike Kelley — Uprooted fruit tree (from Monkey Island)
Mike Kelley

Uprooted fruit tree (from Monkey Island)

A gnarled, uprooted fruit tree is rendered with raw, expressive brushwork in acrylic on paper, its exposed roots twisting upward in a gesture that feels simultaneously violent and absurd. The work draws from Kelley's larger "Monkey Island" project, reflecting his ongoing exploration of dysfunction, displacement, and the dark undercurrents lurking beneath familiar, benign imagery. The tree's uprooted state serves as a potent metaphor for alienation and instability, themes central to Kelley's irreverent yet psychologically charged practice.

Medium
acrylic on paper

🔨 Auction Lot

Under the Influence

March 7, 2014

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About this work

Mike Kelley, Uprooted fruit tree (from Monkey Island)

A gnarled, uprooted fruit tree is rendered with raw, expressive brushwork in acrylic on paper, its exposed roots twisting upward in a gesture that feels simultaneously violent and absurd. The work draws from Kelley's larger "Monkey Island" project, reflecting his ongoing exploration of dysfunction, displacement, and the dark undercurrents lurking beneath familiar, benign imagery. The tree's uprooted state serves as a potent metaphor for alienation and instability, themes central to Kelley's irreverent yet psychologically charged practice.

Medium
acrylic on paper
Seen at
Phillips, New York, London, Hong Kong

Related themes

Acrylic On Paper, Surreal, American, Botanical, Dreamlike, Whimsical, Mixed Color, Narrative, Figurative, Contemporary

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