As one Curator put it:
"My first meeting with Ryden turned out to be one of the most extraordinary visits I have ever made. There could not be a more apt description of Ryden’s studio than the title of this exhibition, Wondertoonel, which refers to a cabinet of curiosities. Filled with pictures and toys from secondhand stores, taxidermied animals, and cyberculture graphics, the atmosphere of alchemy that Ryden captures in his imagery was also evident in this space. The studio, rich in personal items, provides an entrée into his art, as does his life story." Wesley Jessup, Director, Pasadena Museum of California Art

The critical reaction has been the same,
"Ryden is a curio painter with a sweet tooth. No matter how grotesque his situations, his figures aspire to be toys or candy." Regina Hackett, Art Critic, Seattle PI.

Even the artist admits to the inspiration of kitsch.
"This visual debris from contemporary pop culture contains the specific archetypes that formed my consciousness while living in this particular period in history. I often find archetypes in old children’s books and toys, so these things make up a large part of my collection. I am attracted to things that evoke memories from childhood." Mark Ryden

For some critics, technical mastery is enough to merit our attention. "Whatever the merits of his pictures as artistic statements, Ryden commands our attention as a craftsman and visionary of the first order. Very few contemporary artists of any stripe have his command of the vocabulary of representation, and his singular world of not-quite-innocent juveniles and stuffed animals cavorting in vaguely anachronistic landscapes has an astounding sense of presence. I didn’t see any visitors simply walk past these eye-catching canvases; more typically, groups of people stood close, poring over the abundant minutia and madcap narratives, puzzling about deeper meanings." Gary Fagin, KUOW Art Critic & ARTDISH contributer.

The straightforward content lead other critics to enthuse, "Ryden's art has gotten folks back to sitting on gallery couches again. In the way that the Harry Potter books made kids read, Ryden's paintings make people of all categories stand in front of paintings and discuss them. This is an amazing cultural gift to contemporary mankind – and Ryden has made this possible by being true to himself and his talents. A personable guy that has realized the American Dream, we go along for the ride merely by looking at the paintings. We are not unlike his characters that are all conscious of us while on their own heroic journeys via trains, walks, carriage, dreams, or Psilocybin mushrooms." Molly Norris-Curtis, Art Access.

Others have no problem with the kitsch elements. ...Wondertoonel goes well beyond easy kitsch, drawing on a tradition of underground art that nods to everything from Bosch and Dali to Little Golden Books. Ryden produces painstakingly painted canvases of big-eyed children in environments rat-packed with nutty and telling details. Nate Lippens The Stranger.

In the end, if more people go to the Frye Art Museum to see this hyper-injection of saccharine on canvas I think it is well worth it. After all you can always go into the other gallery and see the Ducks.

An Index of Articles and Resources about Mark Ryden
Mark Ryden web-site
Wondertoonel web-site
PI Art Critic Regina Hackett on Mark Ryden
Seattle Times Art Critic Shelia Farr on Mark Ryden
Gary Fagin's ARTDISH Blog entry on Mark Ryden
Seattle Weekly's Andrew Engelson on Mark Ryden
The Stranger's Nate Lippens on Mark Ryden
Art Access Critic Molly Norris-Curtis on Mark Ryden
Read about Carolyn Zick's experience of the Ryden Exhibit from her Studio Notebook