PEPE COMPANION | 2011 AD | PAINTED SCULPTURAL FIGURE | KAWSPEPE POSITIONS PEPE AS BOTH PRODUCT AND SYMBOL, A CHARACTER SIMULTANEOUSLY MASS PRODUCED AND PERSONALLY FELT. THE WORK ACKNOWLEDGES THAT NOTORIETY IS NO LONGER EARNED THROUGH NARRATIVE OR ACHIEVEMENT, BUT THROUGH RECOGNIZABILITY, REPEATABILITY, AND VISUAL STICKINESS ACROSS PLATFORMS. PEPE COMPANION ULTIMATELY COLLAPSES THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN MEME AND MERCHANDISE. WHAT REMAINS IS A FIGURE THAT EMBODIES CONTEMPORARY CULTURAL CIRCULATION ITSELF. A PEPE BUILT FROM THE SAME MECHANISMS THAT PRODUCE ICONS, FAME, AND COLLECTIVE ATTENTION, NOW SITTING QUIETLY WITH THE WEIGHT OF THAT STATUS.

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