ABU DHABI: New York-based Peruvian artist Felipe Urteaga has painted an original, mural-inspired canvas at the Virgin Megastore in Yas Mall, Abu Dhabi as a tribute to Virgin Group’s iconic founder, Sir Richard Branson.
It took Urteaga over 30 hours to complete the 1.5 square metre artwork. As he created it in-store hundreds of visitors got to watch him live at work which commenced on March 20 and ended on March 23.
Urteaga is known for his unique clothing line called Sickindividual which relies on delivering artwork with a message.
About his tribute to Sir Richard Branson, he said: “Sir Richard Branson is a living legend of our time. I extensively researched his life through books, articles and documentaries, and gathered the pivotal moments of his life to compile a unique piece of art that is a representation of his personality, his life and his empire.
“Every detail within the artwork has a significant meaning behind it and the colours and visuals come together to create something out of the ordinary – just like the man himself.”
Sick is cool
Talking about his famous Sickindividual T-shirts, Urteaga said, “Each T-shirt is inspired by cultural icons who have positively impacted society. The word ‘sick’ is used as a slang in the US to represent something ‘cool’. Since we are designing after people who have deviated from the norm to become extraordinary, we view them as if they had a certain disease that has given them an incredible talent to outshine others and inspire people. That’s also why our slogan is ‘illness you want’.”
