JULIA FOX WAS A BRUTALLY RAW ARTIST BEFORE HER FAME FROM UNCUT GEMS AND KANYE WEST
First gaining mainstream notice from her breakout role in Uncut Gems (2019) and then taking the media by storm from her short relationship with Kanye West in 2022, Julia Fox has since been a household name in pop culture. Now she has ventured off in a variety of avenues like fashion, podcasting and writing with the release of her memoir “Down the Drain”.
With everything on her plate as of late, it only makes the start of her career in the public eye that much captivating. On the very surface, the average Joe might write off Julia Fox as just another girl that Kanye “made famous”. Capitalizing off of the attention it got her. When in reality, Julia Fox was out here making a name for her self in the art world with critically acclaimed zines and art exhibitions. Years before even gracing the screen with Adam Sandler
Julia Fox has self-published two art zines. Both are extremely rare with only about 100 limited copies released of each one. Which is exactly why the very few copies for sale go anywhere from $500 to over $2,0000. The context of these zines have now become iconic. Not only were they released during a time period of Julia Fox’s life that was way more low-key but they also feature a very raw look inside of her captivating experience as a teenager and young adult. Oh and it’s actually really really good. Her photography can be compared to that of Nan Goldin or Larry Clark.
Two zines that almost nobody in the world will ever be able to see in its entirety.
Heartburn/Nausea: Symptomatic of A Relationship Gone Sour (2015) that details how highs the ‘highs’ can be and how low the ‘lows’ can be. The book touches on three different relationships that affected Julia Fox’s life. Showing a brutally raw and honest representation of heartbreak, abuse, toxicity and codependency through her photography.
PTSD (2016) documents Julia Fox’s personal experience in the American South, particularly Louisiana. A hardcore but vulnerable depiction of the destructive behaviors, anxieties and pressures that took place. The book was also accompanied by Julia Fox’s first art show curated by Richie Shazam, held at Magic Gallery in NYC.
She would showcase her work in another exhibition “R.I.P. Julia Fox” in 2017 that features artwork constructed by using her own blood with a syringe acting as a paintbrush for the silk canvases that were displayed.
The more you peel back the many layers of Julia Fox the more you begin to appreciate her as an artist, as a creative, and as a human. She has lived an interesting, chaotic, unhinged life but is unashamed of it all. Instead she used her trauma as a catalyst for her art in the most raw and authentic way possible, in hopes to educate those on the issues she tackles while relating to those who have lived a similar life. With everything she has been through, she deserves all the fame.
