Throughout the seventies and eighties, poet, art critic, and Warhol Factory fixture Rene Ricard played a key role in the rise of artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, and Julian Schnabel. So it's fitting that the latter's 21-year-old son Vito—who's been curating shows since way back in 2003—is now shining the spotlight on Ricard by putting together the first UK exhibition of the writer's paintings at London's Scream Gallery. Though the precocious curator has known Ricard his entire life (and even bought his first piece from him), he only conceived of the Scream show after seeing the 62-year-old's Mermaid canvas (pictured, left) last September. "He hasn't made a lot of figurative paintings," Schnabel says. "So this was pretty exciting. The guy's been a real invisible force in the art world for years, and nobody really knows he can paint." He admits he ran into a few snags getting his old pal across the pond for tonight's opening. "Rene hasn't even been out of New York county since 1971, so we had to go to St. Vincent's to get his birth certificate for a passport." Those with similar concerns need not fear: Schnabel plans to bring another Ricard show stateside later this year.
Rene Ricard opens tonight at Scream Gallery, 34 Bruton St., London, (44) 207-493-7388, screamlondon.co.uk