Mark Ryden (b. 1963)

Aurora (#114), 2015

In Mark Ryden's monumental oil-on-canvas masterpiece from the Dodecahedron series, a nude young girl stands melancholically in shallow, reflective waters, her ethereal gaze fixed on a distant horizon. Rocky mountains loom under a cloudy sky, evoking surreal isolation and divine mystery. At 112 x 58 inches, Ryden's Pop Surrealist vision bridges antiquity's geometric enigma with modern whimsy, glazed in baroque splendor.

Charles the First (1982)

Jean-Michel Basquiat’s explosive 1982 acrylic and oilstick canvas pays homage to jazz legend Charlie Parker. Scrawled with the repeated phrase “MOST KINGS” and crowned figures, it fuses reverence, Black heroism, and street poetry. The painting inspired Jay-Z’s 2010 track “Most Kingz,” cementing its cross-generational influence in art and hip-hop royalty lore.