Clown Soldier x Matt Siren x Roycer, Untitled, 2023

Artist Biography & Work Description: Doug Groupp (Clown Soldier)
Doug Groupp is a Queens-born, multidisciplinary artist whose practice is defined by a rigorous academic foundation—including a BFA from SUNY Purchase—married to the raw spontaneity of the New York City street art scene. Since 2009, his “Clown Soldier” moniker has become a staple of the urban landscape, known for iconic wheat-pastes and ad takeovers that feature figures blending Revolutionary War-era uniforms with traditional clown archetypes. His work is heavily influenced by the Surrealist concept of automatism and the “cut-up” collage techniques of William S. Burroughs and Max Ernst. By deconstructing and reassembling imagery, Groupp creates a “personal visual language” that feels like a modern-day hieroglyphic of the urban experience.

This 2023 hand-embellished print features Groupp’s recurring clown-soldier motif, identifiable by the distinctive Dutch ruffle and red-and-white face paint. In this iteration, the central Clown Soldier figure is paired with a minimalist, ghost-like form from friend/fellow artist Roycer, creating a narrative that is both playful and haunting. The print serves as an archival base for a layered collaborative composition with gestural street tags, including “BEWARE THE TRICKSTER” and “HUMAN REMAINS,” utilizing pigment-based markers that add a tactile, one-of-a-kind energy. Presented in a clean gallery frame, the work captures the “visual economy” of the New York street scene while maintaining the material depth of a fine art multiple.

Price499.99Mediummixed media on archival paper; hand-embellished with acrylic markerSize18" x 24"AvailabilityBuy Now