Written by Henrik Broch-Lips, art historian and art critic

It is mainly symbols and figurations derived from the American underground culture, which Frederik Kløve Jacobsen uses in his pop-art inspired paintings. Thereby they seem different from the remaining, Danish contemporary art.

In Kløve’s versions of art in the 21st century, Tom Waits’ shabby Frank-figure trudges out the door, the alcoholic cult writer Charles Bukowski is still hanging about in the bar – or the Statue of Liberty is going down with the American flag.

Kløve Jacobsen’s expressive joy of painting and disrespectful, confident, cultural “hacking” remind you of the American picture- and cocaine junkie Jean-Michel Basquiat’s imaginative paintings from the 80s. The black artist hero exceeded the limits laid down by visual art and made graffiti-inspired paintings, which immediately fascinated Andy Warhol, the king of pop-art.

Less radically than Basquiat, Frederik Kløve Jacobsen also presents intense hacker-paintings. They contain explosive outlets and are often populated by images of blinded flies, giant egg-shaped figures, cartoon figures and black musicians. In his effort to create new and unique samplings, the Danish artist steals left, right, and centre from the commercial and popular culture’s infinite amount of icons.