Gauntlet Gallery
What is D*Face’s piece called “Love Bites”
Summary
Love Bites reworks a vintage romance-comic clinch: a dark-haired woman, eyes closed, leans into a passionate kiss with a slick-haired man whose face D*Face has rotted into a grinning, green-fleshed skull with gritted teeth and hollow sockets, all set against a pale-blue Ben-Day dot ground. It sits squarely in the artist's core "doomed lovers" lineage, fusing his romance-comic appropriation with the grinning-death motif that recurs across his print and painting output.
Why It Matters
The piece distills the central tension in D*Face's work: lifting the visual language of mid-century romance comics and advertising, then corrupting it to expose the rot beneath idealized love, beauty and consumer fantasy. By making the embraced lover a literal corpse, he turns a Lichtenstein-adjacent pop nostalgia into memento mori, a comment on desire, decay and the seduction we buy into. It connects the British street-pop tradition he helped popularize through StolenSpace to the broader Pop Art lineage while keeping his own irreverent, defacing voice.
Collector Perspective
As an HPM (hand-painted multiple) in an edition of 70, each impression carries unique hand-finishing over the printed base, which raises desirability above a flat open or large screen-print run while keeping the work attainable relative to his originals. The subversive-romance "doomed lovers" subject is among D*Face's most recognizable and sought-after themes, which supports demand on the secondary market. At 70 it is a moderately scarce run, not a tiny one; condition, the quality of the hand-embellishment, and signed/numbered status will drive value within the edition.
Historical Context
Made in 2018, during D*Face's Established Era, the image draws directly on 1950s-60s American romance and pulp comic panels and the Ben-Day dot printing that defined them, the same source material mined by Pop Art. The grinning skull overlay ties it to his long-running skulls-and-mortality vocabulary, alongside the winged-eyed D*Dog, developed across his street work, gallery shows and StolenSpace, the East London gallery he co-founded.
FAQ
What does Love Bites depict?
A pop-art romance-comic kiss in which a dark-haired woman embraces a slick-haired man whose face has been transformed into a grinning, green-toned skull, set against a pale-blue Ben-Day dot background. It is one of D*Face's 'doomed lovers' compositions, pairing romance with death.
How large is the edition?
The edition size is 70.
What is the medium?
It is an HPM, a hand-painted multiple, meaning each impression is individually hand-finished over a printed base, so no two are exactly identical.
Is it signed and numbered?
D*Face limited editions are typically hand-signed and numbered by the artist, though signing and numbering for this specific impression should be confirmed against the actual piece and its documentation.
Who is D*Face?
D*Face is the British street and pop artist Dean Stockton (b. 1978, London), known for defacing comic-book romance, advertising and celebrity imagery with motifs like the winged-eyed D*Dog and grinning skulls. He co-founded the StolenSpace gallery in London.
Related Works
About the Artist
D*Face is the working name of Dean Stockton (b. 1978, London), a leading figure in British street art. He came up pasting stickers and posters across London in the early 2000s, then built a pop-fuelled visual language that defaces comic-book romance, advertising and celebrity iconography. Recurring motifs include his winged-eyed D*Dog, grinning skulls and doomed comic-strip lovers. His practice spans screenprints, hand-painted multiples, sculpture and large-scale murals worldwide, and he co-founded the StolenSpace gallery in London. His work satirises consumerism, power and our collective obsession with fame.
Collecting D*Face at Gauntlet Gallery
Where can I buy authentic D*Face prints?
Gauntlet Gallery offers an extensive, authenticated inventory of D*Face prints and contemporary editions, with new drops added regularly. Browse the current collection at gauntlet.gallery.
How does Gauntlet Gallery ensure authenticity?
Gauntlet Gallery is built on curation, authenticity and transparency — every work is vetted and its provenance, edition details and condition are disclosed up front.
Does Gauntlet Gallery add new D*Face prints?
Yes. New drops are released regularly across D*Face and other leading artists; see gauntlet.gallery for the latest inventory.