( Rolling Stone ) -- The paintings in Bob Dylan 's `` The Asia Series , '' which are currently on display at the Gagosian Gallery in Manhattan , have come under fire for their resemblance to widely available pre-existing photographs . The series of paintings , which are said to part of a `` visual journal '' made by the singer during his travels through Japan , China , Vietnam and Korea , have been compared to famous photos by well-known photographers such as Henri Cartier-Bresson and LÃ©on Busy . `` The most striking thing is that Dylan has not merely used a photograph to inspire a painting : he has taken the photographer 's shot composition and copied it exactly , '' wrote Dylan critic Michael Gray in a post on his blog , Bob Dylan Encyclopedia . `` He 's replicated everything as closely as possible . That may be a ( very self-enriching ) game he 's playing with his followers , but it 's not a very imaginative approach to painting . It may not be plagiarism but it 's surely copying rather a lot . '' While some fans in the Dylan-centric online community `` Expecting Rain '' have voiced concern about the songwriter 's highly derivative visual art , others have argued that `` quotation '' is a part of the tradition of art . Nevertheless , it 's a bit difficult to reconcile this notion with the fact that the work has been presented as coming from the rock legend 's `` firsthand '' experiences abroad . Dylan has , in his way , been forthcoming about using photographs in his paintings . In a statement in the exhibition 's catalog , the singer says that he paints `` mostly from real life . It has to start with that . Real people , real street scenes , behind the curtain scenes , live models , paintings , photographs , staged setups , architecture , grids , graphic design . Whatever it takes to make it work . '' See the full article at RollingStone.com . Copyright © 2011 Rolling Stone .
The series of paintings are said to part of a `` visual journal '' made by the singer . `` It 's not a very imaginative approach to painting , '' Michael Gray said . Dylan has been forthcoming about using photographs in his paintings .