Art can be beautiful and compelling. But it can also be brazen and retell a stale tale in a novel way.
Creating conversation starters for the home, The Ugly Duck (TUD) is a rising favourite in the region. Offering cartoon-ified sculptures in their signature duckling blueprint, the Dubai-based brand leans into the loud. Honouring icons and legends across industries, their playful unapologetic pieces have cemented themselves as alluring focal points.
Aimed at seasoned and new enthusiasts, these collectable items hold a sense of unconventional impact. With bulging lips, rounded eyeballs and a stumpy frame, the untraditional models are offered in a range of hues, sketches, and graphics. Only releasing small batches of each edition, these luxury marvels add intrigue to your space while maintaining an essence of taste.
Exploring different intersections with art, TUD features a range of motifs and styles in their drops. From renowned names like Jean-Michel Basquiat and Mike Tyson, to the creative household brand Pantone. Each category reimagines yet another layer of the multi-dimensional character.
TUD X Jean-Michel Basquiat
Most recently their Jean-Michel Basquiat collection seems to creatively reinterpret the mogul’s artistic realm in opposing ways. Creating two separate pieces, while both implore the artist’s devotion to Neo-Expressionist style, one centres tradition while the other pulls in minimalism disciplines.
Riddled in graphics, a blend of Basquiat’s signature graffiti and anti-establishment mentalities is etched onto every corner of this piece. A commentary on injustice, the outward bold qualities of his style were his way of pushing back on the adamant silencing marginalised communities faced.
Slightly more muted, yet never party from their striking ways, the “Untitled Bird” has more subdued elements. With a deep red top, and a cream base, the word BIRD is doodled onto the main body of the TUD. A timeless symbol of freedom, the bird motif trickles through Basquiat’s discography as a callback to his upended search for unconstrained liberation.
Made for those with something to say, TUD continues to press its imprint into the creative landscape. Armed with an intangible raw expression, each luxury collectable sculpture plays and triggers new avenues of exploration.
Explore the latest collection here.
