IRON MIKE VS MIKE TYSON, 36x24, ACRYLIC AND OIL PASTELS ON WOOD

I wanted to paint Mike Tyson for a long long time. Only I didn’t want it to be a typical portrait. It needed to be raw in a way I wasn’t sure how to do. For years I imagined how I might do it, every time I imagined more minimalistic until it became almost a poster. Most importantly I wanted to explore Mike’s inner self and the stresses of being a both a person and a star a look. He was his own champion and his own demon all at once.