Robert Risko
Encyclopedia
Robert Risko is an American
caricature
artist known for his retro
airbrush
style. He began his career by following in the footsteps of his mentor Andy Warhol and moved to New York City from Pittsburgh. He started drawing iconic celebrity portraits in his inimitable graphic style for Warhol's trendy downtown Interview Magazine. His hard edged airbrush style was an instant hit. Risko was influenced by the shiny aesthetic of the 70s and the Deco revival taking place in New York City at the time. Risko recalls, "New York was a petrie dish of creativity back then with people like Mapplethorpe and Madonna pushing the envelope. It was an amazing time to be starting out then."
Robert Risko a.k.a. Risko, is today's most celebrated caricaturist. His style embodies the spirit of the 1930s Vanity Fair caricaturists Miguel Covarrubias
and Paolo Garretto the latter of which he corresponded with until his death in 1989.
At 25 he was chosen by renowned art director Bea Feitler
along with Rolling Stone photographer Annie Leibovitz
and artist Keith Haring
to define the look of the new Vanity Fair when the magazine was relaunched in 1983. He has been a contributor ever since and has been instrumental in not only shaping VF's unique look by contemporizing the spirit of the Bauhaus with his style but revealing personality traits of his subjects by reducing them to their essence with a few stylized colored shapes.
Risko's work is published regularly in most major magazines including The New Yorker
, Rolling Stone
, Playboy
, Vanity Fair
, Esquire
, and Interview
and seen everywhere including television on VH1's Pop 200 Icons Countdown. He illustrated the packaging for the Capitol Sings composer series, and HBO's Comedy Club video series. A collection of his work can be seen in his book simply entitled The Risko Book published by the Monacelli Press or on his website www.robertrisko.com.
Today Risko divides his time between New York City and Easthampton, NY. He is currently working on a children's book.He has also been published in books such as Fame (1979), Fame II (1981), and The Risko Book, a collection of 180 of his pieces. His latest book is Vanity Fair’s Proust Questionnaire: 101 Luminaries Ponder Love, Death, Happiness, and the Meaning of Life (Rodale) 2009.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
caricature
Caricature
A caricature is a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. In literature, a caricature is a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others.Caricatures can be...
artist known for his retro
Retro
Retro is a culturally outdated or aged style, trend, mode, or fashion, from the overall postmodern past, that has since that time become functionally or superficially the norm once again. The use of "retro" style iconography and imagery interjected into post-modern art, advertising, mass media, etc...
airbrush
Airbrush
An airbrush is a small, air-operated tool that sprays various media including ink and dye, but most often paint by a process of nebulization. Spray guns developed from the airbrush and are still considered a type of airbrush.-History:...
style. He began his career by following in the footsteps of his mentor Andy Warhol and moved to New York City from Pittsburgh. He started drawing iconic celebrity portraits in his inimitable graphic style for Warhol's trendy downtown Interview Magazine. His hard edged airbrush style was an instant hit. Risko was influenced by the shiny aesthetic of the 70s and the Deco revival taking place in New York City at the time. Risko recalls, "New York was a petrie dish of creativity back then with people like Mapplethorpe and Madonna pushing the envelope. It was an amazing time to be starting out then."
Robert Risko a.k.a. Risko, is today's most celebrated caricaturist. His style embodies the spirit of the 1930s Vanity Fair caricaturists Miguel Covarrubias
Miguel Covarrubias
José Miguel Covarrubias Duclaud was a Mexican painter and caricaturist, ethnologist and art historian among other interests. In 1924 at the age of 19 he moved to New York City armed with a grant from the Mexican government, tremendous talent, but very little English speaking skill. Luckily,...
and Paolo Garretto the latter of which he corresponded with until his death in 1989.
At 25 he was chosen by renowned art director Bea Feitler
Bea Feitler
Beatriz Feitler , was a Brazilian designer and art director best known for her work in Harper's Bazaar, Ms., Rolling Stone and the premiere issue of the modern Vanity Fair.-Early life, education and early career:...
along with Rolling Stone photographer Annie Leibovitz
Annie Leibovitz
Anna-Lou "Annie" Leibovitz is an American portrait photographer.-Early life and education:Born in Waterbury, Connecticut, Leibovitz is the third of six children. She is a third-generation American whose great-grandparents were Jewish immigrants, from Central and Eastern Europe. Her father's...
and artist Keith Haring
Keith Haring
Keith Haring was an artist and social activist whose work responded to the New York City street culture of the 1980s.-Early life:...
to define the look of the new Vanity Fair when the magazine was relaunched in 1983. He has been a contributor ever since and has been instrumental in not only shaping VF's unique look by contemporizing the spirit of the Bauhaus with his style but revealing personality traits of his subjects by reducing them to their essence with a few stylized colored shapes.
Risko's work is published regularly in most major magazines including The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
, Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair (magazine)
Vanity Fair is a magazine of pop culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast. The present Vanity Fair has been published since 1983 and there have been editions for four European countries as well as the U.S. edition. This revived the title which had ceased publication in 1935...
, Esquire
Esquire
Esquire is a term of West European origin . Depending on the country, the term has different meanings...
, and Interview
Interview
An interview is a conversation between two people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee.- Interview as a Method for Qualitative Research:"Definition" -...
and seen everywhere including television on VH1's Pop 200 Icons Countdown. He illustrated the packaging for the Capitol Sings composer series, and HBO's Comedy Club video series. A collection of his work can be seen in his book simply entitled The Risko Book published by the Monacelli Press or on his website www.robertrisko.com.
Today Risko divides his time between New York City and Easthampton, NY. He is currently working on a children's book.He has also been published in books such as Fame (1979), Fame II (1981), and The Risko Book, a collection of 180 of his pieces. His latest book is Vanity Fair’s Proust Questionnaire: 101 Luminaries Ponder Love, Death, Happiness, and the Meaning of Life (Rodale) 2009.