We’re not even into April yet, and already Iggy Pop fans everywhere have had their fill – quite literally – of the punk pioneer. After releasing his 17th album, Post Pop Depression and starring in a ‘post–rockcalyptic’ thriller Gutterdammerung, Pop found some time to foray into the art world – bollock naked, of course.
Earlier this month Pop posed nude for a life drawing class led by British artist Jeremy Deller at the New York Academy of Art. In a press release to accompany the event, Deller explained that it made “perfect sense” for Pop to take part, as “his body is central to an understanding of rock music and its place within American culture. His body has witnessed much and should be documented.”
Now Pop has spoken out about the experience, saying in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that “it was not about anything silly”. Clarifying that there was an artistic purpose to his involvement ie., it wasn’t just about getting naked, Pop said, “It wasn’t about my winkie, or anything. It was just a documentation of what’s left of me. I thought it was a good idea the artist had and I enjoyed so much the company of the 21 drawing students and working artists. It was a very nice vibe in the room.”
Intriguingly, Pop said he passed the time during the 20 minute class by running through his own back catalogue in his head. “The way I got through it, without going crazy, was listening to my own songs from my albums — including this one — in my head”. If you’re excited to see what Iggy Pop looks like naked and prostrate across a classroom table, the work from the class will be displayed this autumn at a special exhibition in the Brooklyn Museum.
