Will Cotton Brings His Thought-Provoking Wonderland to Rockefeller Center

On view through May 31 in New York at Rockefeller Center is a suite of alluring works by the acclaimed American artist Will Cotton. Presented by Art Production Fund’s “Art in Focus” public art program, Cotton’s unmissable site-specific installation is made of larger-than-life murals and captivating sculptures, bringing together his paintings of cowboys, mythical creatures, candies, and more.

“We are delighted to bring Will Cotton’s exuberant works to Rockefeller Center, and welcome spring at one of the world’s most famous destinations for public art,” said Eb Kelly, Senior Managing Director of Tishman Speyer and Head of Rockefeller Center. “Moments of joy await all who encounter Cotton’s fantastical landscapes as they navigate our campus this season.” 

Beneath 45 Rockefeller Plaza on the Rink Level is a massive mural seen along the 125-foot display that features paintings of Cotton’s cowboys and unicorns. Made up of 29 paintings, it was created over 23 years. The images also appear across Rockefeller Center in several public locations—including 30 Rockefeller Plaza, 10 Rockefeller Plaza, 50 Rockefeller Plaza, and more.

“Will Cotton’s seductive works at Rockefeller Center give visitors the unique opportunity to immerse themselves in his dream-like world, bringing a welcomed sweetness to their encounter,” added Casey Fremont, Executive Director of Art Production Fund. “The gorgeous cotton candy colored installation, with images that seem suspended in time, is in stark contrast to the bustling urban environment that surrounds it.” 

For the exhibition, Cotton focused on his work’s centric motifs—like cowboys, unicorns, and confectionery—to represent larger themes and ideas of gender and representation. In a juxtaposition of sugar-coated landscapes, sweet visuals, and gritty cowboy culture, the real and the ethereal merge to present a look at temptation, indulgence, and how our understanding of mythologies shape our contemporary contexts.  

Ahead of finishing new paintings of mermaids for an upcoming solo show at Templon Gallery—”Between Instinct and Reason” (May 7–June 28) in New York—Cotton shared with Whitewall an inside look at his Rockefeller Center exhibition.

Inside Will Cotton’s Exhibition

WHITEWALL: Your work has long featured cowboys and unicorns as modern mythic figures—communicating themes of gender representation, among others. What message do you hope viewers take away?

WILL COTTON: There’s an undeniable fascination with mythic creatures in our collective imagination, and figures like cowboys and unicorns serve as modern symbols of archetypal masculinity and femininity. By embedding them in our contemporary visual culture, I’m looking at how these ancient mythologies shape gender identity. What viewers may take away is the realization that these mythic figures are malleable, their power drawn not from the rigid and dated expectations but from their capacity to challenge, critique, and reimagine gender norms in a more fluid, contemporary context.

WW: How do the themes of temptation, indulgence, and excess connect to your larger body of work?

WC: Temptation, indulgence, and excess are central themes in my work because they reflect how our culture handles desire. We’re surrounded by constant messaging that encourages us to consume, indulge, and chase pleasure. Through my use of candy, frosting, and other indulgent imagery, I try to show both the allure and the darker side of that cycle. 

Will Cotton’s Ideas of Excess and Consumption

WW: Your cake sculptures and frosting details play with themes of consumption. How do you think these visual elements challenge societal ideas about desire and excess?

WC: The cakes and frosting I use are symbols of consumption, but not just in a literal sense—they’re metaphors for the larger cycles of desire and gratification. It’s about the messiness of desire and excess—the crumbling of sugar and frosting becoming a stand-in for the decay that often follows the pursuit of instant gratification.

WW: We often see your work through paintings. Tell us a bit about creating sculptures for this project.

WC: There’s a physicality to sculptures that paintings, as two-dimensional objects, simply cannot match. Sculptures occupy space, they create environments and expand our sensory experience. The viewer is invited not just to observe, but to move around the work, to see it from different angles. It becomes a more visceral, embodied encounter, not just a visual one.

How Will Cotton Made Murals and Sculptures

WW: What unique circumstances did you face in translating your detailed paintings into large-scale public murals and sculptures?

WC: The leap from the intimacy of a painting to the expansiveness of public murals and sculptures is significant. This was an opportunity to create new threads of meaning by reorganizing the order and juxtapositions between paintings. The 125-foot-long mural is made up of 29 paintings created over a period of 23 years.

WW: How do you see your work engaging with the history and cultural significance of Rockefeller Center itself?

WC: Rockefeller Center is a space rich with history, and it’s been home to so many important art installations over the years. In looking at themes of American mythologies and their relevance in modern society, I feel connected to the energy of Rockefeller Center—a place where culture, commerce, and art have always collided.

The Importance of Public Art

WW: What role do you believe public art installations like this play in shaping cultural narratives?

WC: Public art becomes a part of everyday discourse, offering a space for reflection, criticism, or even a sense of joy. It’s not just for the art world; it’s for everyone, providing the opportunity to engage with a broad and often unsuspecting audience.