It’s a stunning early September morning in the city and Michael Moebius is soaking it up on the scenic and sun-kissed rooftop of the Bisha Hotel Toronto. The famed German artist was in town in advance of his exhibit at Galerie de Bellefeuille, which opened on September 22 and will run until October 3. Now, Toronto’s lovers of pop art can get up close and personal with a few of Moebius’s beloved creations. The show isn’t the only mark he is making on Toronto: Moebius’s art will be featured throughout the anticipated upcoming 60-storey Q Tower Condos development in the city’s Harbourfront neighbourhood, a joint project between Lifetime Developments and DiamondCorp.
If the name Michael Moebius isn’t a familiar one, you’ve likely seen his work (or imitations of his work – more on that later). Moebius is known for his splashy “bubble gum” pop art portraits that have made him a favourite of esteemed art collectors and celebrities. Created in 2012 through a meticulous painting process, Moebius’s bubble gum portraits of icons Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn depict both ladies shamelessly blowing bubble gum (does it ring a bell yet?).
It didn’t take long before his eye-catching creations began commanding attention across the globe, adorning covers of esteemed publications like Robb Report. Essentially, the images went viral before going viral was even really a thing. In the years since, Moebius’s subject matter has included everyone from Queen Elizabeth II and Karl Lagerfeld to Steve Jobs, David Bowie, Kate Moss, and The Beatles – the common denominator being playful bubble gum bubbles front and centre. Most recently, Moebius has been creating a series of James Bond pieces.
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Growing up in communist East Germany, Moebius had limited exposure to pop culture or global brands, let alone pop art. “East Germany was afraid of Donald Duck, he was highly forbidden,” says Moebius. “If you were caught with a Coca-Cola can, you had to crush it with your foot in front of the school. If you were caught with a Mickey Mouse magazine, you’d have to tear it apart.”
As soon as the Berlin Wall came down, Moebius moved to Los Angeles to pursue his career as an artist, assuming the role of the typical young “starving” varietal until his work began catching the attention of Hollywood’s deep-pocketed art collectors. Collectors of his work include everyone from Paris Hilton to the late Hugh Hefner. The artist will likely add a few Toronto collectors as clients after his conversation-provoking art graces the Q Tower.
“For Lifetime Developments and DiamondCorp, it’s always been important to us to create buildings with unique spins – not just for marketing it pre-construction, but for when people actually move into the building,” says Brian Brown, Principal at Lifetime Developments, who joined us on the rooftop that morning. “We wanted to make sure that the experience of anyone entering the building would be memorable – whether that be walking through the lobby or enjoying an amenity space. This is an iconic location, so we needed an iconic artist connected to it.”
Brown says that some of Moebius’s art actually influenced some of the spaces in the condo development. “The casino room will feature several of his pieces – the James Bond figures blowing bubbles,” says Brown.
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Moebius’s anticipated James Bond series will be released next year. Moebius says that he typically works on three or four paintings at a time. “If I were to focus on one – nine hours a day, five days a week – it may take around three to four weeks, depending on the detail involved,” he says. “But I never do this, because I need to step away from an image, or once you make mistakes, you won’t see them anymore. You need to go back to an image with a fresh eye – maybe after a week – and I often make a lot of changes.”
Moebius will study the subject for a few weeks or months, pulling 10 to 20 different stills of who he is painting, and come up with his own collage in advance of getting started. He’ll also study video clips of his subject matter. “The best perspective is often from film clips and videos, as opposed to still images,” says Moebius. “For example, Sean Connery – it’s so hard to find good still photos of him, but I find really great angles in movies, and I take a screenshot of that. Very often, I’ll combine five different images into one.”
Not only is Moebius’s art attention-commanding, it’s also proven to be precedent-setting. The famed bubble gum portraits have become some of the most infringed pieces of art in existence. “It went so viral, I was competing with my own images,” says Moebius. “My bubble gum images are some of the most copied pieces of work ever.” The images quickly began preceding him, getting copied throughout the world without any real benefit to Moebius or his bank account.
The images have surfaced as unauthorized reproductions everywhere from bustling street markets across the globe, to digital expanses on the internet. While this clearly highlights the global allure and high demand for his work, the bigger issue – a common one when it comes to the world’s most coveted luxury brands – is the widespread, highly unethical infringement.
Setting a precedent for other artists – and serving as a warning for would-be art imitators – after a lengthy legal battle, Moebius secured a historic $120M copyright victory. This marks the largest ever awarded to a living independent artist. His case, a well-known one in the art world, saw Moebius file a lawsuit against a shocking 399 companies guilty of infringing on his right. “Hopefully other artists will benefit from this ruling, because a lot of people are suffering from this,” says Moebius.
He’s not stopping there; Moebius says he’s currently in the process of suing fast fashion giant Shein. “They infringed my image 10,000 times over the years,” says Moebius. “Thousands and thousands too many.”
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On a lighter note, there is a particular fanbase who Moebius encourages to mimic his work: children. “One of the greatest compliments you can get is when you inspire kids worldwide,” says Moebius. “So many kids send me pictures of them recreating my art or blowing bubble gum very proudly. It is beautiful; one of the most heart-warming things you can experience. It’s hard to get kids into art; you take them to a gallery and they’re like, ‘Where’s the ice cream?’ But every age is attracted to this bubble gum art. It’s a great twist for some unexpected characters, like Queen Elizabeth – you never saw her with bubble gum. It’s a little edge and great twist, with elegance.”
When it comes to challenges for up-and-coming artists, Moebius says one of the biggest hurdles is simply getting your work seen. “The best thing to do is to find good people to work with and stick with them,” he says. “And that takes time. To get your art out is the biggest challenge. I just kept focusing on my art. If you do things people like, word will spread quite quickly, especially with today’s social media networks.”
Once his work began to attract a healthy buzz throughout Los Angeles, Moebius’s path meant living the high life with the pretty and powerful of Hollywood (and still does). When Hefner became a fan of Moebius and his work, he invited him inside the colourful world of one of the most storied homes on the planet. Through art, the two became close friends.
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“I became a regular at the Playboy Mansion, and one of the last he accepted into the family,” says Moebius. “I became very close to the family; I’d be there Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sundays – movie nights, barbecues, fun in the sun. Hugh was one of the kindest people I ever met, he was so supportive. It was the most beautiful time; I really miss this time. I miss the Playboy Mansion time.”
From a communist upbringing behind the Berlin Wall, to the interiors of the Playboy Mansion, it’s been a journey filled with both risk and passion for Moebius. Though not without its hurdles, it’s paid off.
“Follow your dreams,” says Moebius of advice for young artists. “If something comes from the heart, it will be strong. If you create something with passion, you create something strong. They called me a starving artist, and I was like, ‘What the fuck?’ and I did it for myself. I like what I do and focused on my idols. I watched these people before me do it. So, I left my country and followed my own path.”
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