Jardin de Mode

Burton Morris

60″ × 48″

Silkscreen, Spray Paint, and Acrylic on Canvas

Jardin de Mode is presented as part of Burton Morris’ solo exhibition Icons in Bloom at MASH Gallery. The work belongs to the artist’s Sea of Roses series, where the single rose is transformed into a dynamic and immersive visual field. Long associated with beauty, romance, and luxury, the rose becomes both subject and structure. Through repetition Jardin de Mode, layered silkscreen, and painterly interruption, individual blossoms overlap and intersect, dissolving into collective movement that reshapes a familiar symbol into an expressive architecture of color and rhythm.

In contrast to Morris’ earlier works, which emphasized bold contour lines and graphic precision rooted in the visual language of classic Pop Art, this new body of work reveals a decisive evolution. Artists such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein foregrounded mechanical repetition and flat commercial imagery. Morris now allows variation, transparency, and tonal layering to introduce depth and spatial complexity. The rose is no longer isolated as a singular icon. It expands across the canvas as an environment, where red and blue overlays create vibration, tension, and harmony within the composition.

The visible layering recalls the history of silkscreen in Pop Art, yet the painterly interruptions and subtle tonal shifts emphasize process rather than perfection. This shift reflects Morris’ broader transformation from tightly rendered graphic imagery toward more expressive, layered compositions he describes as “perfect imperfections.” In doing so, he advances contemporary pop art beyond simple replication of consumer symbols and into a more immersive, materially driven experience. Jardin de Mode demonstrates how the icon can be reopened, deconstructed, and reassembled, expanding the conceptual boundaries of Pop Art for the 21st century.