“LET THE LIGHT IN” BY JOHNNY DEPP: From the Chaos of the Silver Screen to the Calm of the Canvas

On Thursday, July 24th, Asya Radko, the founder of Drive Music Media, attended a private viewing of Johnny Depp’s original artworks, "Let the Light In," held at the charming Castle Fine Art gallery on South Molton Street in London.

During the event, Asya spoke with art expert Alina Mihai about Johnny’s technique, the deeper meanings behind his work, and the exhibition itself, which opened to the public a week earlier.

Art shouldn't be confined by rules — it should transcend them. To truly touch the human soul means to forget the outer shell and give freedom to feelings that have long been locked away in the prison of others' expectations.

Johnny Depp, as an artist, has a deep sensitivity to emotion and isn’t afraid to use a different color palette in each of his works — sometimes wrapping you in an embrace, other times sending you spiraling into the depths of human consciousness. This is especially true in his The Bunnyman Genesis series, a story that traces back to Johnny’s childhood.

The film crew arrived at the gallery around 10 a.m. In the gallery window hangs a copy of Johnny’s self-portrait; the original is downstairs, in a dimly lit room with a cozy sofa and a small table. The soft lighting creates the feeling of an intimate, one-on-one conversation with the artist. It’s his space — and yet, he shares it with you. That feeling is echoed in the title of one of his paintings, featuring Johnny’s self-portrait: Belong to You.

But more on that later.

We’re greeted by the gallery’s art expert, Alina Mihai. The journalist and two videographers step into a bright room, and even at the entrance, a few of Johnny’s earlier works are already on display — The Bunnyman Genesis and Tarot.

The Bunnyman Genesis emerged from the disturbing dreams of Johnny’s son, Jack, and from Johnny’s own childhood nightmares. But, as always, only an artist can turn fear into a signature — something that no longer frightens, but protects.

Each of Johnny’s works carries his logo — Bunnyman. It reflects the deep bond he shares with his son and the importance of childhood preserved in every breath of adult life.

Because without it, a person becomes a slave to the system, losing the most vital thing — the ability to realize their dreams through the lens of a child’s gaze, something that must be protected even in adulthood.

Art expert Alina also reflects on this when our journalist asks about the series:

«It’s an old collection, yes.

I believe, if I remember correctly, this is the second collection after Friends and Heroes.

So, this collection will be the first to come with a very personal story behind it.

He says that when he was little, he often had a recurring dream of himself standing by the basement door. And then there would be this forest or a shape, very similar to a bunny, that would stop him from going into the basement. We really connected with him on that. That was when he was a child, living back in Kentucky.

Years later, he saw Jack scribbling something and asked him about this shape. Jack, his son, said he was having dreams about it.

It was actually a beautiful surprise for Johnny to realize that he and Jack were seeing the same character — the shape of the Bunnyman.

Since then, Johnny has put this character on a beautiful pedestal, seeing him as our protector — our guardian Bunnyman.

He’s someone who guides us through fears and everything else.

So, yes, this is the Bunnyman collection.

They come in four formats. This one here is entitled Bunnyman Flowers. You have this beautiful mystical creature surrounded by something soft.

This would be a silkscreen print. If you approach closely, you can see a beautiful texture to it.

In his original painting, as you can see here, he used some kind of risers — like risers to create texture, which is very interesting.

Probably he was thinking, «How can I integrate my tools into this?» And he did it successfully.»

Our journalist is carefully observing the paintings — she feels something deep, and two of them resonate with her the most: Multiverse and Flowers. The color combination in Multiverse is striking — especially the presence of pink. Flowers evokes a sense of home and childhood — as if a family member just stepped into the garden. Origins, however, evokes mixed emotions — a certain tension and a childlike fear — even though Johnny himself chose to see Bunnyman as a protective symbol.

About the uniqueness of each painting in The Bunnyman Genesis series, Alina says this:

«So, the first Bunnyman that Johnny ever painted was this one, which is called Origins.

Many, many years back — this was the first one he ever painted.

And then, over the years, he brought this character — this Bunnyman — into different atmospheres.

You know, like flowers, or cosmic scenes.

I mean, you look at it and you can imagine anything.

It’s like someone out there, far away in outer space, watching over us. So you can imagine whatever you want, really.

I don’t have a clear story behind the flowers or why they’re cosmic.

But I think for Johnny, the idea stays pretty much the same — It’s about someone who protects you.

The Multiverse, too — I mean, it can mean anything. But yeah, that’s the beauty of Johnny.

At the end of the day, even though he presents such a personal collection, he leaves it open to the viewer. And I think that’s really important in an artist.»

When our founder Asya asked which of the paintings was Alina’s personal favorite, she said Flowers:

“I think it’s because I like the idea of placing such a strong character in such a soft environment. That contrast is extremely powerful — it draws you in and makes you want to look deeper, to see what else you might discover.”

The first exhibition Alina told us about was Johnny’s latest one, Let the Light In, but it’s impossible to talk about the artist without looking behind the scenes of his earlier works and understanding their stories. Even the history of the logo says a lot — the Bunnyman comes from Johnny’s very first personal painting series. So, we continue our journey into the world of tarot.

The Tarot series includes four works — «The Lovers», «The Emperor», «The Empress» and «Strength». Two of them remain on display at Castle Fine Art gallery to this day.

Johnny loves tarot and believes in mystical things — something that resonates deeply with our journalist and founder Asya, who also holds a strong belief in mysticism and has a deep fondness for tarot. That’s why Alina and Asya begin their conversation with this very series.

«These two right here are from his tarot collection.. I think this is the very first collection that, when it came out, a lot of people were like, “Oh, for sure, Emperors.” Emperors is Johnny, and Emperors is Vanessa Paradis.

He said himself, “I would never dare to put myself or paint myself as an emperor.” So, with that, it’s a little bit of a mystery.

But going back to the Emperors, it’s clearly...

You know, it’s Vanessa Paradis, for whom he holds deep, huge respect. I mean, she’s the mother of his two children.

And, yeah, so the painting itself, and within the tarot idea, the cards, I mean, Johnny is deeply fascinated with tarot.

He’s fascinated with whatever is almost mystical.. Makes it almost untouchable.

You see a beautiful infusion of silk screen. You see a gold leaf as well. I mean, she’s stunning, absolutely stunning.»

In some of the artworks, Asya noticed a marker that felt deeply familiar — since her teenage years, she had drawn people without faces, believing that a painting should convey a feeling rather than appearance. Of course, the meanings behind such an approach are always personal, and it would be impossible to claim there’s a single reason behind it — but it reminded her of her own artistic style.

Everything he creates is infused with love and helps break the boundaries that society imposes to limit creative potential. In acting and in art, he always adds something personal — and that’s what makes him unique. His ability to create an alternative vision is the most essential key to his success.

The meaning doesn’t lie in the fact that he is Johnny Depp — the star of Pirates of the Caribbean, Sleepy Hollow, or other films. The meaning lies in the fact that he is a person who genuinely wants to touch people’s souls — and he is capable of doing so.

The entire story that came before seems to have laid the foundation for what Johnny has now revealed in his latest exhibition… because everything has a beginning.

Interestingly, the new collection «Let the Light In» includes only two works — and they appear like portraits of a daughter and a father, hanging side by side in a dimly lit room: a rose, interpreted as his daughter Lily-Rose, and Johnny’s self-portrait. Poetic and deeply sincere.

«Castle Fine Art was founded in 1995.

We’ve been in the market for 30 years now, and we are very proud to have artists like Johnny Depp and many others in our portfolio.

We take great pride in that, and the success of Johnny’s collection has been absolutely incredible.

What you see here is his latest collection. It’s a very personal body of work that reflects his life, his family, and his inner world.

For example, A Rose is a Rose is a Rose was painted back in 2000, during a time when he was still surrounded by his entire family. It’s a beautiful and heartfelt dedication to his daughter — from a proud father.

The self-portrait, on the other hand, was painted, according to Johnny, sometime between a few months to a year ago.

And again — it’s a masterpiece. It’s incredible how, even without clearly seeing the eyes, you instantly recognize him.

However, the self-portrait isn’t necessarily about Johnny the celebrity — it’s about Johnny the artist.

As he once said himself, that he always wanted to be an artist and a musician, not an actor.

But sometimes, the vocation chooses you more than you choose it.

When it comes to his technique, Johnny works with a mix of mediums — oil, acrylic, and various tools that help him bring authenticity and depth to each piece.

A Rose is a Rose is a Rose — also referred to as Lily-Rose — is deeply personal, as is the self-portrait, which I believe shows the artist more than the persona.

This is his latest collection, and the attention it has received has been nothing short of phenomenal.

What you’re seeing here are giclée prints on paper — a limited edition of 195 pieces — representing an almost perfect reproduction of Johnny’s original paintings.

The artworks are truly stunning. Absolutely phenomenal.»

The founder of our media, Asya, lingers on the painting of the rose. She’s drawn to its depth, the way he plays with color and light. As you step slightly to the side, the canvas almost seems to glow from within.

The self-portrait "Add The Light" strikes her with the absence of eyes — yet the detail in the lips, the shading, the softness of the strokes — it feels like Johnny’s true way of seeing himself as a person, not just an image.

One painting seems to break away from the others — with its pop-art gloss and vibrant sheen. But that contrast is the point: it shows Johnny’s ability to move freely between styles.

Belong to You, his self-portrait, is painted in oil with elements of digital editing. According to the art expert, when he was going through difficult times and everyone was canceling contracts with him, Dior Sauvage continued their collaboration with Johnny. Later, he painted this self-portrait as a sincere “thank you” for that.

Painting yourself is always a challenge because you’re showing how you see yourself. It’s more about feelings than just capturing a person’s natural appearance.

The art expert also notes that painting yourself is always a challenge and reveals the secret behind the technical side of this piece.

«It’s quite hard to paint yourself. It’s challenging and takes a lot of courage. But the meaning behind this piece is extremely honorable and deep.

As for the technique, it’s different from his other works. He’s an artist who experiments with various styles.

Technically, this piece isn’t 100% original — some lines were digitally manipulated — but everything else you see, except the background, including his face, lips, nose, and so on, is oil painting.

So yes, oil painting. It might look like something else, but it’s actually oil paint. Isn’t that amazing?

He also wrote “Belong to you” on it. What a signature. “Belong to you” — it can speak to every single one of us here.

For me, for you, for him, maybe it meant something personal. But ultimately, it was his own decision to create this for people — for everyone — as a way to connect.»

Alina then goes on to talk about how their collaboration between Castle Fine Art and Johnny began, and recalls the first exhibition, «Friends & Heroes»:

«Well, we first launched Johnny in 2022.

It was a completely different kind of launch — phenomenal and surreal at the same time.

His entire debut collection, Friends & Heroes, sold out in under — gosh — 10 minutes. Our website crashed for 48 hours.

I mean, he was the most Googled man on Earth in 2022. Just his first name was enough. And then, sadly, the Queen passed away. But the launch? It was absolutely phenomenal.

So when he came out as an artist, it was a big surprise to many — and an even bigger success. A huge success, absolutely.

When we first found out we’d be showcasing his artwork, we were over the moon.

We didn’t know exactly what to expect, but fast-forward to today…

Honestly, I don’t think there’s another artist — other than maybe Bob Dylan — who’s made us feel this excited.

We do work with a large portfolio of artists, I want to make that clear.

But getting the chance to work with someone like Johnny — I mean, it’s Johnny Depp. He’s known by absolutely every single person on this planet. It’s incredibly exciting.»

Our founder Asya listens to Alina attentively, hearing Alina’s feelings about that day is like traveling through time and seeing everything with your own eyes. But her eyes keep returning to the details in the portrait. First and foremost — a person is a person. Yesterday, we were unknown, and tomorrow we might become the most famous people on the planet… but what remains is who we were before it all. A fame doesn’t mean someone has become a different person — it means what you’ve created has resonated in the hearts of others, and that you had the courage to speak about it.

And Johnny had the courage to step forward and present himself as an artist. Because when you’re already well-known in a different field, there’s always that fear that people will respond to your art only because of your fame — and not truly connect with the meaning behind it. But he came out of the shadows and told his story.

Alina points out that the preparation was intense:

«Well, the launch itself — it was crazy.

Like I said, we didn’t have enough artwork for everyone, so we actually got some complaints.

I think they came from a place of love — people were just disappointed that there wasn’t enough to go around.

So yeah, it was a really special launch, a special release.

And I think it made a big difference when the full collection was posted on Johnny’s official Instagram page.

That really helped raise awareness — people started realizing more and more that he’s an artist.

I mean, Johnny’s been an artist for years.

I’m not sure how many people actually know that,

But he’s been painting since he was a teenager — maybe even younger.

So for him to finally have the courage to share that side of himself publicly — that takes a lot. And honestly, I think it was the best decision he could’ve made. Yeah, it really was.»

According to the art expert, the directors believed that Johnny’s first exhibition — curated by Castle Fine Art — was not only his statement as an artist, but also a sincere “thank you” to all the people who helped shape him not just as an artist, but as a human being. Among the famous figures he portrayed were Al Pacino, Bob Dylan, Liz Taylor, Keith Richards, and others.

She explains that some might assume people buy his work simply because he’s famous — but in reality, it doesn’t work like that. What truly matters is that there are stories behind the artworks. People need something they can emotionally latch onto. Without that background, there won’t be any deep or lasting interest.

Johnny Depp is a man who speaks through art — someone who expresses gratitude and shows love through the most profound form of communication: through painting, acting, and music with the band Hollywood Vampires.

In his work, you don’t feel a desire to be famous — you feel a need to be heard.

Asya’s goal was to hear what he says through every brushstroke of his work — through childhood fears transformed into strength, a talisman of love and gratitude in every sweep of the brush.

So, if you ever feel like touching art a bit deeper — Let The Light In...

Pictures and videos were taken by videographers from KINGS HARVEST PRODUCTION Danylo Chekin and Yuliia Strizh for Drive Music Media