Reflecting the artist’s affinity for the grotesque, this extremely rare, early work from 1977 by Joe Coleman depicts a group of side show performers. With nuance and detail, "Storm" both analyzes and exalts the dark side of human nature.

Joe Coleman (b. 1955) is a New York-based artist best known for his highly colorful and intricate illustrations and paintings, which often take the form of portraits of fringe historical figures and pop cultural icons. The dense referencing and idiosyncratic complexity present in Coleman’s works have drawn comparisons to the Dutch master Hieronymus Bosch, while the artist’s use of color and collage-like effects indicates his background as a comic book artist. He has a vast collection of serial-killer and sideshow ephemera wax-museum dioramas all housed in his "Odditorium. In 2006, Jack Tilton (NY) had a retrospective of his work. Coleman’s work has been featured in recent exhibitions at the Palais de Tokyo (Paris), KW Institut (Berlin) Bass Museum, Miami, FL (2009); the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart, Germany (2009); the Jewish Museum, New York, NY (2010); and the National Academy Museum, New York, NY (2012), among others.