John Altoon

Untitled (1957) by John Altoon  

notable works by John Altoon

John Altoon was a major figure at the notorious Los Angeles Ferus gallery during the 1950's and 1960's. His untimely death of a heart attack in 1969 robbed art enthusiasts of his instinctive expressionism.  A man with an out-sized personality and wild imposing intensity, the influence of John Altoon reigned large over the L.A. art scene during his short lifetime. His Personality drove much of his fame and without that presence overshadowing everything else his artwork slid into obscurity until recent years. Solo exhibitions of his art were not done again until 1988. Many of his friends also proved to be notable figures in art history, including Ed Kienholz, Robert Irwin, Billy Al Bengston and Ed Rusha. 

Altoon was known as a charismatic and emotionally troubled man that lived passionately and created art that delved into the beauty and strain of life. He is primarily known for his abstract drawings and paintings. These abstract works have been described as a grab bag of vaguely figurative, botanical and biological form, but he was also praised for some of his lesser-known figurative drawings from his Advertising Parodies and large-scale pastels of 1962 and 1963. He is also recognized for his Animal series of 1966-68, and his Cowboys and Indians series and Object series both of 1968. 

The Advertising Parodies and large pastels that Altoon completed between 1962 and 1963 explore the human figure in media and pop culture. In these Parodies, Altoon pulls imagery and text from contemporary commercial advertisements. These pieces are not only proof of his illustrative skills they also show his distaste for America’s greed and the use of the sexual form in advertisements. One example of this distaste is a satire of a Colgate toothpaste advertisement.  In this piece a man opens a door exposing a half-naked woman.  in the background, behind this female figure, a crucifix hangs on the wall but instead of Jesus Christ a nude woman is crucified. 
 
In the Animal series, Altoon’s comical and sexually explicit intentions are completely exposed. The absurdity of the imagery is sometimes comical but often with a disturbing aspect. These pieces also exhibit a change in his drawing style, showing a looser line that makes certain parts of the image indiscernible. The subject matter of these pieces seems to allow Altoon not only to explore his own personal sexual interests but also to expose Western society’s insecurities.  
 
Altoon was diagnosed as schizophrenic in his late 30's. He was unable to work due to intense depression and and paranoia during the late 1950's and early 60's. He then became a patient of Dr. Milton Wexler a prominent psychoanalyst who was able to restore his ability to work. From that time until his death he became the most productive and stable.