'JANIS JOPLIN MERCEDES'8x10 PRINTS (MUST BUY AT LEAST 4-YOUR PICK!) KATA BILLUPS

Description

TITLE:
JANIS JOPLIN - MERCEDES BENZ
MINIMUM PURCHASE REQUIRED-
*4* or MORE SIGNED PRINTS
(your choice!)
FREE SHIPPING on them ALL!
I am honored to have thousands of collectors
across the globe.
Some are well-known
musicians,
actors,
actresses
and filmmakers.
A partial list includes:
Julia Roberts,
Dennis and Randy Quaid,
R.E.M.,
Trudie & Sting,
Susan Sarandon,
Tim Burton,
and Jimmy Vaughan
for more information about my work:
click the link below to go to my main website:
rock and roll icon art by kata billups, rockandrolliconart.com, cadiz
These prints are professionally printed
on very heavy gloss paper
and cut to a very easily framed size (8"x10").
D.I.Y. FRAMING ADVICE FROM KATA:
The collector can find quality discount frames in many shops. I suggest buying a frame with these three things; glass, a backing of some kind and a hanging apparatus on back. This allows the collector to simply open the piece up and 'sandwich' the signed print between the glass and backing. The glass is necessary to keep the print
free from dust (and stabilizes it as well).
for more about my work
please see my main website:
rock and roll icon art by kata billups, rockandrolliconart.com, cadi
ARTIST'S DESCRIPTION OF PAINTING :
This piece follows a central theme of my rock and roll icon body of work-
(which is fame and the odd things surrounding it...)
In this scenario from my imagination-  Janis just wrote her song 'Mercedes Benz' (and her handwritten lyrics hang on the wall behind her)
She will (sadly,) die from a drug overdose not many days after... but is conversing with the Lord (in her song) and is happy.
I imagined her happy because she finally found love (a man who really loved her) and perhaps the Lord too. MORE COMING...
WHAT MAKES KATA'S ART STAND OUT
(ABOVE OTHER ROCK & ROLL & SPIRITUAL/JESUS ART?)
When my rock and roll icon artwork began (in the late 1980's)
I was one of the first to be working in this genre
(beside the great illustrators for the Rolling Stone Magazine
and Andy Warhol and a few others).
Nowadays, hundreds of people are selling rock and roll themed artwork.  Running roughshod over famous photographer's copyrighted images of celebrities, they then do a simple adjustment in photoshop and hire someone to print the image on canvas. Most current artists working in this vein lack the clout WARHOL
had to do this. Unlike Warhol (who did a similar simple process; by taking pictures and having his 'Factory' workers print them e-masse on canvas) piece really mean anything (or ever appreciate in value). Interestingly enough, just previous to this writing- Wrahol's estate is being sued over copyright he breached.
On the other hand, only a small group of classically trained artists can hand-paint a subject's bust or full body within a scene. Skills in composition, anatomy, color etc. take decades to refine.
Then, only a small handful in that group have anything to 'say' with their work.
I try never to breach copyrights by using my own pictures and blending images and styles etc.  But here's where my work outshines most; each of my pieces has a message. They are in parables about culture; often
derived from an autobiographic element of my own life.
Lastly, most of my body of work 'works' on multiple levels and that's led to its far-reaching popularity. In other words, when Julia Roberts bought my piece 'ELVIS DREAMING OF LOVE' she did so because she 'saw herself' in it.
Like Roberts, most of my collectors are well educated, well-traveled people; (many tell me they've been to most major museums in the world!) They recognize the underlying messages, my references to parts of other artists works, the comic insinuations I make in certain pieces etc.; and that's why they buy my work.
I've heard from collectors again and again saying things like: "I don't even LIKE Elvis, but your work spoke to me, and I bought it".
That's because my work is not REALLY ABOIUT ELVIS (or the Beatles or anyone in particular) it's about life's larger themes (it is social commentary at its core).
I paint when I feel compelled to make a statement about life. Many such statements are made
through my few very recognizable (and some now gone) rock and roll icons (and an outside the box emotional Jesus is another of my bodies of work). These recognizable characters have become my doppelgangers. As I compose the work- I become like the director in a play.
Finally, my work is not simply about the characters the messages or the income. I've lived a long life as a fine artist, built a couple bodies of work and am working on an autobiography (and other books). I hope and pray the book becomes a film because it contains a lot of life experiences I hope to hand down to others. My intent is that the reader receives tips from my failures as well as success about a range of topics; becoming an artist, transformation as a spiritual person, learning to live as a Christian, seeing God perform miracles and healings etc.
TECHNICAL DETAILS:
This piece is CATEGORY 7.
CATEGORIES OF WORK:
(listed in descending order by price and rarity)
1. PRIMARY ORIGINALS
These are the most time-consuming, most expensive and generally the largest in scale of
my works.
They are owned by hundreds of Private Individuals and several Museums worldwide.
One Primary Original may take weeks, months or even years to complete.
For decades I created
an average of five to twenty pieces of this
type work per year.
I'm taking a break from creating
them to build my
business
and life in new ways. I am not yet sure if I will ever create work in this
category
again.
For updates please check
k a t a b i l l u p s . c o m
2. VERSIONS OF WORK
These are generally the second most time-consuming and expensive of my works.
They
are owned
by
hundreds
of individuals across the world.
Each one is an entirely hand-painted VERSION of a
Primary Original Painting.
They are similar but in no way identical to the
PRIMARY ORIGINALS
after
which they take their
inspiration. Within
these pieces
I've been inspired to rework or add
new
characters,
furnishings,
backgrounds
and colors
in ways
that
never occurred
in the PRIMARY
ORIGINALS paintings.
These pieces may even
contain
new themes and ideas.
I typically devoted one
to four months creating
each
piece (
depending
on size and complexity).
They sometimes (but not
always) include
unique frames
embellished with one-of-a-kind
mattes
and vintage objects de' art
and
unusual titles. They are framed
in many ways; simply,
ornately, etc. They
were painted on a variety
of surfaces besides just canvas or wood including gallery wrap
canvas
and small furniture; (both which
required
no frame).
All these works
are technically and
legally
Original Paintings.
They are
entirely 100%
hand
painted throughout all
the layers
applied
as the
work
progressed.
I
generally
created
around
five to
fifteen pieces in this category of work per
year.
This
category of work began
in
approximately
2004
and ended in 2023.
I have
around
ten
to
fifteen
unfinished
pieces
within this
category
in storage
and
may complete
them
if I am so inspired
in the future. If so,
they
will be dated
the year
they
are completed.
3. REPLICA ORIGINALS
These are typically the third most time consuming type of work (and third most expensive)
and are owned by over one thousand
people across the globe.  There may be over two thousand in
circulation. I do not know
because
I never kept exact records.
The demand for them arose
when Patrons
admired some of my previously sold PRIMARY ORIGINAL
pieces and
wanted
something
similar
but
not as expensive.
They are are similar to my
VERSIONS
of WORK (see
category
2. works
above)
with
some
important
exceptions.
First of all,
they are as
close to being identical to
the PRIMARY ORIGINALS
as possible.
They have no new creative d
evelopments within them (unlike works in category 2.)
with
the
important
exception of
the frames
which were often
elaborately
embellished
with one-of-a-kind
mattes,
vintage objects de'
art
and unusual
titles.
They are painted on a variety of surfaces
(wood,
canvas,
mirrors, small
furniture and
other
materials).
They are
hand-painted
REPLICAS
of
some
of my
favorite
PRIMARY ORIGINALS
.
Each piece is hand
painted
across
the
entire
surface
and
many
have
additional
painting in
layers beneath
the surface of the top glazes. Each work
required at
least a
week
or several
weeks
to complete (depending on the size and complexity).
They are legally and
ethically
also
Original
Paintings
in their own
right.
I began
this category of work in
approximately 2004.
In late 2023 I stopped
creating in this category.
I have about forty
unfinished
pieces in this category
(in storage) and may complete these works
if I am so inspired
in the future. If so, they will be dated the
year they are completed.
4. SMALL GALLERY WRAP CANVAS REPLICA ORIGINALS
This category was created in 2021. I created less than 70 of these
and will never create any more.
They are similar to my Replica Originals but smaller. For or more on REPLICA ORIGINALS see category
3
above
.
In addition they are
created
on gallery
wrap
canvases which are deeper than most average
canvases. They're designed to be painted on all four
external edges
of the
canvas (edges
which are
typically
covered
by a frame. The idea is for the collector
to
display
the
work
without
a frame and enjoy
the
unique
dimensional
effect
as the
painting 'wraps around' the sides.
The artwork may also be
displayed 'standing up' on a piece
of furniture. P
roper
hanging
apparatus
is attached to the
back
of the canvas.
5. SECOND STYLE REPLICA ORIGINAL PAINTINGS
New to the market beginning in 2023 and projected to be my main product
going
forward,
this type of
work is similar to my
REPLICA
ORIGINAL works but less expensive. Like my
VERSIONS OF WORK,
I've added
new
elements.
This type of work
allows
endless opportunities to re-express
myself
(beyond
the
original
inspiration
). I'm adding
additional
themes and
characters
to
previously
created
PRIMARY
ORIGINAL pieces.
Each piece
is first
printed
on a uniquely light-weight yet strong material
using
state
of
the art
equipment
(for
maximum clarity of resolution
,
color, etc.). I then spend several hours
embellishing
the piece with hand painted
areas (and attaching one or more
vintage objects de' art
to the
frame.
The areas of hand painting
make
each
piece an
ORIGINAL work of art technically and legally.
6. SPECIALIZED FRAMED OR MOUNTED PRINTS.
When I first offered this category at the
inception
of my rock and roll icon art work, pieces were typically
framed
after
being mounted on foam core or wood.
They generally had many objects de' art attached to
the piece using glue and or wire.
I
also
mounted the prints on small pieces of furniture, toys, cigar boxes,
mirrors,
musical instruments etc.
I began with very small embellished  framed prints at my first show in
Nashville TN. in the early
1
990's. Originally using tiny photographic prints of my work called proof shots,
eventually my work expanded in size. I created and sold
hundreds (
probably over one thousand)
of these
works. The prints mounted on toys, furniture and other
objects during this early time were more rare.
I
created about one hundred of them.
These pieces were created only between the years 1993 and 2004.
They ranged in
size
from
very small (around 3" x 4" to much larger 16" x 20" or so).
7. 2023 SIGNED PRINTS
About twenty five years after beginning
my rock
and
roll
icon
art
business,
I stopped
creating
prints.
Around 2004 I wanted
all my future collectors to
own works more
unique and valuable
than my
prints
(which were mainly sold framed and with kitsch objects attached as mentioned above
in Category 6).
This decision was made even though many
early collectors (like Julia Roberts) owned
these pieces.
For one year only (2023)
I produced signed prints one more time. This was in the interim of
developing
a
more
affordable new product (see category 5 above). The new product
evolved
as I began to phase out
my
older
categories
of work.  This made the remaining work more rare and
therefore
more
expensive
and
I still wanted any
potential
collector be able to afford my work so I
developed
a new product.  While
creating
the new
product
it seemed
good to offer signed prints one last time. Each one was produced
on
extra heavy card
stock paper
with a gloss finish
using the most
expensive state
of the
art equipment.
Each one was signed and
dated.
+ In order to draw more people to my online presence I decided to created prints once again from late 2024-
until-