Our cover this month, Hornbills by Hunt Slonem, sold for $6,875 at Doyle’s Fine Modern Art auction on March 10, 2020 in New York City. Slonem is known for his vibrant paintings, often featuring exotic birds and scenery, inspired by his time living as a child in Hawaii. Slonem is so passionate about birds that he lives with an estimated 60 of them as pets in his New York City home. His art also features repetitive imagery, which he says was part inspired by Andy Warhol, part by prayer and worship.
In addition to his paintings, Slonem’s extensive repertoire includes many other art forms. He’s particularly passionate about renovating forgotten historic buildings. Other notable accomplishments include an enormous mural he completed in 1995 for the Bryant Park Grill restaurant in New York City, an exclusive design for Audi’s A5 coupe model unveiled at the New York International Auto Show in 2008 and, more recently, a home décor collection for Bergdorf Goodman in Fall 2019, to name a few. At age 68, Slonem is still going strong, working out of his Brooklyn, N.Y. studio, with books and a documentary possibly in the works.
At the end of May, Slonem’s work was featured as part of The Altruistic Art Auction, an online auction to raise money for grants to Palm Beach County artists impacted by COVID-19.