Superheroes

Hulk, Thor, Superman, Catwoman, Wonder Woman, Iron Man or Wolverine: are these the new stars of contemporary art? We've been asking ourselves this question for years, thanks to their huge presence, both on the big screen and painters' canvases!

Superheroes are hardly a new trend, but they've recently seen a surge in popularity as a result of the impressive cinematic blockbusters created by Marvel and DC Studios.

Although there are similar figures throughout the history of art, like the demigod Hercules of antiquity, the epic comic book superheroes that we know today were born between the Wall St. Crash in 1929 and the Second World War. They allowed Americans to escape their daily lives, with extraordinary characters, full of courage and hope.

During the war, Captain America fiercely fought Nazism. Batman; the Gotham City mob… From the moment it entered the war, the American army supplied plenty of comics to soldiers, which often accompanied them abroad.

Having become popular icons; superheroes very quickly became part of contemporary art, particularly under the influence of Pop Art. Andy Warhol, the precursor of the artistic movement, proposed his own version of Superman in a 1960 silkscreen print inspired by comic books. This marked the beginning of a lasting tradition.

Australian photographer Anthony Lister also utilises pop culture, including supermarket labels, adverts and above all, images of superheroes. He has taken  photos of himself in a Robin costume to create a unique destructured silkscreen print and creates paintings of heroes, with a mixture of several characters.

Other artists even use their heroes in grittier ways to convey engaging messages. For example, Raymond Pettibon's works are accompanied with sharp and scathing phrases. Gilles Barbier's 'L'Hospice' (Hospice) of superheroes pokes fun at and ridicules our childhood heroes.

Street art has also taken the reins, and there are plenty of graffiti and other street artists who take on these figures and their superpowers in order to show their weaknesses or enlighten the public about contemporary social issues.

Female superheroes are also becoming increasingly emancipated and prominent in art. Having often been left in the background in a world dominated by masculine figures, they no longer need to be saved and are even stronger than their male colleagues, particularly those by Rose Agathe Steiner or Cosmicg.

For his part, Dong Oan creates posters of superhero wrestling matches, with the Hulk and Spider-man amongst others, as fighters ready to face one another - sure to be a spectacle!

On Artsper, this selection pays homage to these superheroes, mythical figures of humanity, through the place they occupy in the work of painters, photographers, and sculptors who embrace comic book aesthetics to illustrate our postmodern condition. Whether brought together, ridiculed, or conveying committed messages, these characters allow artists to create joyful works that often conceal a deeper, more critical interpretation.