This class clowns issue of Beautiful/Decay is dedicated to those artists who pack their work not only with meaning but with a powerful punch line that keeps us coming back for more. Join us as we delve into the world of Winnie Truong’s surreal and funny portraits, and find the humor in Devin Troy Strother’s discomfort with his own race. Witness how Maurizio Cattelan has become the art world’s premier prankster and gain insight into artistic duo littlewhitehead’s mixture of dark humor and lo-tech fabrication. View our cover artist Stefan Glerum’s arresting illustrations, and Ben Aqua’s subversive photography. See how William Powhida’s cynical, self-deprecating, and universally criticizing works take the role of the court jester to a new level. As if that weren’t enough to keep you busy, we’ve also invited an international cast of artists, illustrators, and designers to create original works for our Project Pages based on our theme.

So get out your X-ray specs as we explore the worlds of Beautiful/Decay’s class clowns.

Other featured artists: William Barry Roberts, Mark Benson, Charles Irvin, Chris Kerr, Daniel Davidson, David Leggett, Felipe Goncalves, Ginette Lapalme, Jared Andrew Schorr, Mark Flood, MR. Phomer, Sisilia Piring, Stephen Kelleher, Milana Braslavsky