Hi Andy,
Here is something. Hope it makes sense. I’ll send through more notes for Zac after the weekend. I think will write by own essay and then Zac can edit. The idea is quite complex
Sis
This body of work addresses the dark realities that lurk beneath the thinly-veiled facade of modern-day ‘utopia’, contemplating the dangers that arise when pursuing a fantasy. Many of the figures are trapped within their own fantasies, fettered by their rejection of reality. Take for example the image of the reclining girl; she is so captivated by her fantasy that she becomes plagued by idleness, unable to ever actualise these dreams.
Images of carefree and idle women - the inhabitants of Utopia - are juxtaposed with dark and humbling scenes that depict the reality of a utopian society. I have been particularly interested in the utopian promises spewed by popular culture. Social media and television have constructed a world where even darkness and decay has been sugarcoated and glorified. Depression, addiction, abuse and chaos are depicted as beautiful normalities of adult life that we should aspire to. Young people are lured to dark forces with the promise of euphoria and adventure, only to be rudely awakened by the gravity of real-world repercussions.
(In latin, Utopia means ‘no place’. In Thomas More’s seminal satire of the same name, beneath a surface of progressiveness and harmony, Utopia is a fallible and toxic place. Autonomy and self expres- sion are replaced with uniformity and a crippling dependance on the state. This idealised construction of society has been carried into the modern world;)
Informed by the symbolism and tales of religion, classical poetry and history, these paintings speak to the fallibility of impossibly idealistic ideas and false promises.
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(In other words, Tv the show Eeuphoria rues heroin addiction is seen a twisted adventure, when in the real world it’s different. Utopians in Utopia work shorter days and all have a shared income, but in the end idleness sets in and people are stuck to the same labor intensive job for the rest of their lives and become frustrated because it is human nature to want to progress and grow. Shit like dress-making, art etc is banned because the utopians reject materialism. In reality, society would fall a part if people aren’t able to pursue hobbies and passions. Without art, or fashion, or design or diversity, there is no space for self expression or self-determination. Everyone is homogenised and become dispensable clogs in the clock)
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