AFEWYEARSAGO, the
StateRussianMuseum inSt.
Petersburgdebuteda retrospec-
tiveof Sylvester Stallone’s artwork
—30pieces spanningalmost
threedecades.When somecritics
questionedwhether the star’s
canvasesdeserved tobeplaced
on sohighapedestal,Vladimir
Guzev, themuseum’sdirector,
justified thedecision to reporters.
“This is a real artist,”Guzev said.
“TheRussianMuseumdoesnot
showweakartists.”Evidently, in
the state-rungalleriesofPutin’s
Russia, as in thehighest echelons
of theKremlin, there isno room
for lightweights.
Stallone recentlyhad a show-
ing at theMuseumofModern
andContemporaryArt inNice,
France, and you can always
seehis artwork— “HerculesO’
Clock” and “Life in ’57,” among
others—ondisplay atGalerie
Gmurzynska inZurich. Should
youwant toown an authentic
Stallone,Galerie represents his
pieces, which are for sale for the
right price.Although there are
noofficial announcements for
moreStalloneexhibits, hepaints
frequently, so keep aneyeout
formore art in 2016. —E.L.
STRONGMAN
WITHANEASEL
SylvesterStalloneusesmanycanvases to
tellhisstory to theworld
tome,”hesays,“because ithitmeonarealvisceral
andemotional level.Ihadneverseenanyonebuilt like
that,but itwasalsotheethicsofthecharacter—the
wayhe lookedandthewayheacted.Isaid, ‘This isa
rolemodel.’AndfromthatmomentIstartedbecoming
verybody-conscious.”
Stallonewasstillaskinnykidwhenhewalkedout
ofthattheater,buthebeganworkingoutandbecame
big;sobigthatwhenhetriedouttoplayBiff ina
productionof“DeathofaSalesman,”thedirector in-
formedhimthathisauditionwasn’tbadforaguywho
looked likeaNeanderthal, thengavehimthepart.He
studieddramaattheUniversityofMiamibutdidnot
complete.Rejectedbyeverycastingagent inNewYork
City,heworkedcuttingfishheads,cleaning lion’scages
andbeingamovieusher.Hegotacoupleofsupporting
roles inminormovies.Hewrotescripts,buttheygar-
nered littlemore interestthanhisacting.Atage24,he
wassleepingatthebusstation inNewYorkCity.
In
TheOfficialRockyScrapbook
,Stallone’s1977
chronicleaboutthefilmthathad justwontheBest
PictureOscar,hewroteabouthis29thbirthdayparty
twoyearsbefore.“ItwasJulyandIwassittingacross
frommywifewhowasgrowingwiderwithpregnancy
andmydogwhowaseatinghisownfleasbecausewe
weresobroke.”Itwas inaclimateofdesperationthat
Stallonespentthreedaysbangingoutascriptabouta
washed-upboxerwhogetsone lastchanceatglory.
Stallone identifiedmorethana littlewithhishero,
disregardedandcountedouthisentire life, finallyable
toprovetotheworldwhathe’sreallymadeof.
“You’realwaysbeingunderestimatedandpre-
viewedandreviewedbyyourphysicalexterior,”Stal-
loneexplains,hardlymakingthedistinctionbetween
himselfandRocky.“Ithinkthat’shumannature.
Whenyouseesomeonewho justdoesn’tfit intoabox
and looksa little intimidating,rightawaypeople’s
guardsgoup.WithRocky,noonereallygottoknow
himbutAdrian.Nooneeverbotheredtodig intohis
psycheor intohisheart.Thatkindoffeeds intohowI
feltgrowinguptoo.”
Withthesuccessofthefilm,RockyandStallone
lostproportion.Bothwentonfromstrengthto
strength,victorytovictory.In
RockyIV
, theerstwhile
palookagoesagainsttheboxingequivalentofaSoviet
ballisticmissile—asteroid-pumpedRussiankilling
machinenamedDrago,playedbySwedishactorDolph
“YOU’RE
ALWAYSBEING
PREVIEWED
ANDREVIEWED
BYYOUR
EXTERIOR.”
TOPANDBOTTOM
:
Stallone in front of
hisworkat a retrospectiveof his
paintings entitled “Real Love”;
Stallone’s “FindingRocky”; Stallone
workingon the terraceof hishome
52
NOVEMBER2015
AMERICANWAY
PHOTOS
FRANCK PENNANT/GETTY IMAGES ; COURTESY GALER I E GMURZYNSKA ; JOHN BRYSON/GETTY IMAGES
