Mark Ryden born January 20, 1963, is an American painter, part of the Lowbrow or Pop Surrealist art movement. He was dubbed "the godfather of pop surrealism.”
Blending themes of pop culture with techniques reminiscent of the old masters, Mark Ryden has created a singular style that blurs the traditional boundaries between high and low art. His work first garnered attention in the 1990s when he ushered in a new genre of painting, "Pop Surrealism", dragging a host of followers in his wake. Ryden has trumped the initial surrealist strategies by choosing subject matter loaded with cultural connotation.