"ALI - THE PEOPLE'S CHAMP" BY IVAN BESLIC

"It was 2 am in Germany, I was going to bed to catch some sleep when I saw on the internet that Muhammed Ali was in critical condition and it really hit me. I stood up immediately and knew that all I wanted to do in that moment was paint Ali. While I was painting I heard the news that he passed away at around 6 am. I was so shocked that I didn’t sleep that night and didnt stop painting until I was finished. He was so much more than just a boxer, he was a game changer, he is The Peoples Champ!"
- Ivan Beslic

Ivan Beslic is a self-taught Croatian artist based in Leverkusen, Germany. His work is defined by decisive strokes and a close kinship with his subjects. The 30-year-old sketches his portraits on canvas with a clear-cut pencil. He then fleshes them out with a series of bold and colourful pencil strokes that appear to reveal and conceal his subjects in a type of hide-and-seek with an urban graffiti aesthetic.

The end product is reminiscent of Vincent Van Gogh’s scratchy technique and Jackson Pollock’s emotional outpouring. Beslic explores the limits of color to capture mood. His close-up portraits of 21st century musicians and athletes are not unlike Andy Warhol’s own series of the most influential personalities of his time.