Image via Complex Original
Sometimes the simplest way to liven your living space is to throw a poster on the wall. But unlike the Sports Illustrated models and beer pong-themed drawings you find in college dorm rooms, these posters are a lot more tasteful and awesome. Street artists likeCYRCLE. and RAE sell authentic prints for relatively affordable prices, and there are hundreds of underground artists creating fresh and economical prints available online. Check out our list of 25 Prints You Should Buy Right Now, and upgrade your apartment immediately.
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Man Inside by Sam Spratt
Price: $20
Named after Tobias Funke's infamous book The Man Inside Me, this print captures the Arrested Development character's essence. If you're a fan of the show, you will appreciate artist Sam Spratt's talent in mastering David Cross' face as well as the reference to his character's pipeline dream of becoming part of the Blue Man Group.
Mona Lisa by Marko Köppe
Price: $19.99
Marko Köppe works with textures and blocking to create simple collages with strange arrangements. His version of Leonardo Da Vinci's Mona Lisa is an abstracted and modern version of the classic painting.
Pulp Street by Beery Method
Price: $18
Pulp Street is a badass print that blends two totally opposing pop culture references into a dark and highly stylistic scene. The poster is from Beery Method's "Pop Fiction Collection," a series that matches childhood icons with more adult content. The choice to represent Bert and Ernie as the gangsters from Pulp Fiction with dead, unseeing eyes and off-putting openings for mouths makes the poster that much more creepy and awesome.
Spain by Pez
Price: $150
Street artist Pez began writing graffiti in his hometown of Barcelona, Spain in 1999. His art is influenced by urban subcultures and comics, and it always features his signature "smile." Spain is a pop art print with bold colors. It's sure to brighten any apartment.
The Grand Budapest Hotel by Vania Zouravliov
Price: $50
Vania Zouravliov's print is an homage to Wes Anderson's most recent movie, The Grand Budapest Hotel. It interprets the director's extremely stylistic visual taste into something of its own. The print acts as an advertising poster for the film, with characters peering through the tangles of a snowy terrain.
Purple Swag by Andrea Mangiri
Price: $20
Andrea Mangiri's depiction of A$AP Rocky captures the rapper's deep, purple soul and solid fashion sense. Its flat, airbrushed feel is reminiscent of album artwork or graffiti.
Wifi Jesus by Rene Gagnon
Price: $150
Rene Gagnon was a passionate graffiti artist in the '80s who worked with artists like STER. He also coined the term "Post-Graffiti Abstract Expressionism." Gagnon's print Wifi Jesus reflects his street art roots, yet the hand-painted watercolor details show his more refined, studio experience as well. The print marries two different art styles in a comical depiction.
Jug by RAE
Price: $325
Brooklyn-based artist RAE's use of textures and colors recalls the work of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Pulling from both urban themes and tribal motifs, Jug features an abstracted face relayed over a patterned yellow background.
Le Tigre by Chris Saunders
Price: $85
Le Tigre is a bold and graphic print, but artist Chris Saunders balances this out with cool greys and blues. To Saunders, Le Tigre is about power and self-agency. With high quality ink layers and textural complexity, it's a great addition to any bachelor pad.
Love+Made, Heart by Love+Made
Price: $65
Love+Made is a company founded by designer and artist Linda Lovemade. She launched Obey Clothing's first women's collection in 2003 and then consulted for brands like Vans, Billabong, and Stussy before going solo. Love+Made, Heart is a five-colored, mosaic heart that's geometrically complex enough to be an awesome work of art.
Beautiful Disaster (Artist Edition) by CYRCLE.
Price: $300
Street art collective CYRCLE. created a print true to their eclectic and graphic design-based work. The bright and happy floral pattern wraps around a grenade with cutout instructions, signifying impending doom. The print also has a watermarked message, colorful splatters, and CYRCLE.'s logo smoothly incorporated in the composition.
We Are All Kings, Archive by Amanda Visell
Price: $400
Artist Amanda Visell is greatly influenced by early animation. She started out designing and sculpting for stop-motion segments and then moved on to show her work in galleries. Visell has worked for shows like The Simpsons and has partnered with Disneyland. Her print We Are All Kings, Archive communicates the whimsical yet authoritative importance of animation in her life.
Water I by Dr. Lukas Brezak
Price: $18
This print is beyond refreshing. The variety of blue hues and the motion of the water make this a dynamic yet minimalist piece. Water I is the kind of print you want hanging in the bathroom or in your room near a bright, calming window.
Tyrion by Mike Wrobel
Price: $18
If you like Game of Thrones, look no further. Tokyo-based graphic designer Mike Wrobel (Moshi-Kun) creates images of cultural icons using 1980s and 1990s aesthetics. For his throwback works, he pulls characters from Game of Thrones, Fight Club, Breaking Bad, Star Wars, and The Lord of the Rings. His images are insanely well executed and entertaining.
SpiderBrush by Grégoire Guillemin
Price: $20
French artist Grégoire Guillemin focuses on pop art images, vintage fiction, and comic books with his work. Guillemin has established himself at the forefront of the "Geek Art" movement. His collection "The Secret Life of Heroes" depicts heroes and other iconic, fictional characters partaking in vices and mundane activities. Here, Spider-Man is caught brushing his teeth.
The Jewel In The Lotus by Cryptik
Price: $125
LA-based artist Cryptik is known for his use of mandala-inspired geometric patterns. The Jewel In The Lotus is from his ongoing project "Mantra Mandala Series." The metallic tones and calligraphy-heavy form is mesmerizing.
Lie With Me by JeanPaul Mallozzi
Price: $65
JeanPaul Mallozzi's curious print shows his mastery of hyperrealism and artistic narration. The abstracted, blue face of the man frowns upon the woman as she stares playfully towards the audience, totally unaware of his gaze or the light cast upon her. Mallozzi created the print in the middle of a "rough relationship," and it sends the message of knowing when to "let go." It's melancholy, but it's gorgeous and captivating.
Shark Head - Blue Fluorescent Variant by Shark Toof
Price: $250
Street artist Shark Toof's work can be found in the streets of Miami, Los Angeles, and now your home. In May, 1xRUN and Detroit's Inner State Gallery debuted a solo exhibition titled "I'm Shark Toof, Who The Hell Are You?" which showcased the artist's evolving handle on pop culture, street art, and comic book references. This print of Shark Toof's infamous shark head was featured in the gallery.
I Am Malfi by FriendsWithYou
Price: $100
FriendsWithYou is an art collective consisting of Samuel Borkson and Arturo Sandoval III. Their post-pop and geometrically simple prints challenge the line between high and low art, a wavering distinction contemporary artists face today. I Am Malfi depicts FriendsWithYou's signature character with a dramatic, cartoonish frown.
Gold Finger by Chad Muska
Price: $100
This sick print titled Gold Finger is by artist and professional skateboarder Chad Muska. Gold chains and sketchy typography frame a hyperrealistic hand flipping the bird. The tough and rushed feeling of the piece is reminiscent of skateboarding and street art alike.
Biggie Smalls by NTSG
Price: $55
The LA-based art duo NTSG (acronym for Never Trust Silent Girls) specializes in awesome typography. Their print Biggie Smalls reads, "I still miss you Biggie" in a thick, Old English font. It's a sentiment we can relate to. Support the duo, decorate your home, and pay homage to The Notorious B.I.G.
MOONRISE by Beth Hoeckel
Price: $18
MOONRISE is a peek into the pleasantly graphic dream world of Beth Hoeckel. Mixing vintage images with landscapes and astrological scenes, her artwork is distinct and oddly futuristic. Her collages are often minimal and clean color schemes that feel like the visual equivalent of shoegaze music.
Pisces by Jenny Liz Rome
Price: $18
This affordable print is simple and creatively relies on the textures of skin tones and material for depth instead of color. It's childlike yet seductive like an innocent pinup girl. You can order this original artwork by Jenny Liz Rome in various sizes.
Happy Christmas From Edinburgh Bargain Basement by Charlie Anderson
Price: £440
Scottish artist Charlie Anderson's work is an exciting blend of sexy and busy. Using fragments from old postcards, newspapers, and magazines, he gives his large-scale works a post-punk feel and urban aftertaste. Anderson's print Happy Christmas From Edinburgh Bargain Basement is just as amorphous and intriguing as it sounds. His use of muted yellow, magenta, and screen-printed images are ripped and pieced together to create the perfect print for a bland wall.
Manarch (Pasta) (2013) by Anthea Hamilton
Price: $500
This photo-collage is both a little jarring and aesthetically pleasing. Characteristic to Hamilton's affinity with juxtapositions of food and the human body, the screen-print depicts a man in black-and-white with colorful varieties of pasta under his shirt.