plastic perler beads as pop-art portrait necklaces

plastic perler beads as pop-art portrait necklaces
images courtesy of it’s poppin

new york city based designer victor-john villanueva, of 3PTPOP, is the creator of behind a series of portrait neckwear made from a classic childhood toy: perler beads. drawing influence from pop-culture, and contemporary art and design, the artist handcrafts large-scale depictions entirely out of fusible beads and resin, then attaches the pieces to a silver chain to be worn around the neck.

villanueva starts by selecting the figure he’d like to recreate in bead art, pixelates the image on the computer — which he uses as a reference when applying and fusing the beads together — then coats the portrait in a layer of resin for permanence. using fashion as a medium for communication, the celebrity beaded models are based on a range of famous figures such as andy warhol, anna wintour, karl lagerfeld, and biggie smalls. the art necklaces play on the nostalgia of a favorite childhood toy while referencing contemporary pop culture.

the artist’s beaded representation of japanese artist and writer yayoi kusama

lady gaga necklace

portraits of terry richardson, fashion photographer (left) and hamish bowles, international editor at large for vogue magazine (right)

a collection of villanueva’s work

eight pieces on display at neoteric fine art in amagansett, new york

the designer wearing one of his creations (left). the influence behind the necklace woman, I by willem de kooning (right)

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