Marilyn Monroe

Pegasus is the tag name of Chicago-born London-based street artist, Chris Turner. Recognized as one of the most dynamic street artists at work today, Pegasus creates striking images of cultural icons through a unique process of layering detailed, hand-cut stencils with bright and colourful spray paint. His work ranges from playful cultural commentary to hard-hitting political messages in a style which he describes as ‘punk meets pretty’. He is also widely admired for his series of poignant memorials to some of the iconic figures who have now left us such as David Bowie, Prince, George Michael, and his close personal friend, Amy Winehouse.

Influenced by Warhol and Haring, Lichtenstein and Hirst, Pegasus aims to produce works which are ultimately uplifting and life-affirming. This positive intention is reinforced by the words and phrases he includes, such as “Nothing is impossible” “I just want to be wonderful” and “life is a journey.” He is also closely involved with a number of charities, and often uses his work as a means to raise funds and as a platform from which to speak up for social justice calling himself a “punk pop political street artist”.

In 2017, Pegasus created an Amy Winehouse street art trail in memory of his friend. This led to an installation inside the Jewish Museum in Camden for the memorial exhibition, Amy Winehouse: A Family Portrait, and his portraits of Amy are now part of the Jewish Museum’s permanent collection. He also features in the Hollywood Museum in Los Angeles, where his portraits of Marilyn Monroe, Lucille Ball and Bette Davis are on permanent display. He explored this Hollywood connection further with a controversial work entitled I got 99 problems but an O$car ain’t one for the streets of London; the day this appeared he was invited to reproduce it in LA to coincide with the 2016 Academy Awards Ceremony.

These and countless other commissions and collaborations have led to major press coverage for his high-profile exhibitions including Gods and Monsters in London and LA and Neon Nights in London, with features in the Huffington Post, Evening Standard, Daily Mail, Artnet, NME and the BBC, and he has been interviewed by the BBC, NBC and London Live. His impressive list of celebrity commissions includes actor Lindsay Lohan, entertainer Alan Carr, singer Alexandra Burke and England Rugby legend Ben Cohen and his partner, ballroom dancer Kristina Rihanoff.