With his “Shadowman” figure paintings, Richard Hambleton developed a unique and arousing form of public art that engaged the viewer’s psyche through the element of surprise. Splashed on buildings and in alleyways, Hambleton’s shadows seem to jump both at and in reaction to the passerby. Translating his shadow cat figure onto plexiglass, Hambleton elevates the sensation of movement and energy as the colors and tones transform in the glass as the viewer’s perspective changes. Here, Hambleton creates a stimulating and eerie illusion of a startled cat.

Along with close friends Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat, Canadian-born painter Richard Hambleton (b. 1954) pioneered the 1980s Lower East Side art movement in New York, generating buzz with his “public art” painted on unexpected street corners as well as his street art inspired canvases, which were exhibited in major galleries. Using cryptic imagery and dark aesthetics, Hambleton has explored a “Mass Murder” concept with his police chalk outlines and victim inspired paintings, which led to the development of his “Shadowman” paintings. Hambleton studied Painting and Art History at the Emily Carr School of Art in Vancouver, Canada, earning his BFA in 1975. That same year he founded the gallery and performance space, “Pumps” Center for Alternative Art in Vancouver. In 2011, Andy Valmorbida and Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld presented a retrospective of his work in New York, NY. His work was also featured in the seminal 2011 Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, CA exhibition "Art in the Streets."