Project 1 Artist Research
Todd Schorr
After looking around for artists that both were interesting and related to what I’m trying to do with my art for the class, I came across an artist named Todd Schorr, who is a pop surrealist and known best as being a part of the “Lowbrow” art movement. (Art and Culture). This “Lowbrow” art movement arose from underground cartoonists, who mixed different subcultures together to create work, typically paintings, but also in other mediums. The artwork produced by the art movement is very visually loud with humor mixed into the work.
Specifically with Todd Schorr, he adds in satire and humor into all of his paintings, which as caused in some exhibits a bit of uproar. Namely the painting entitled, “Clash of Holidays” which was featured in a Florida museum, that caused talk of the right to free speech within art. When I first saw the painting, I thought it was nothing more then just a play on pop culture icons. The painting is of santa claus holding an axe dripping with blood while engaged in a fight with the easter bunny, who is holding a knife. Around the two characters there’s a jesus baby eating the ear of a chocolate bunny, and a confused chicken in the background. He paints them in such a violent scene, which is an ironic redition of what Americans are used to seeing them depicted as.
I think that Schorr could be questioning the basic concepts that revolve around the pop icons, possibly questioning what the holidays stand for today, especially with the consumerism that plagues the two holidays. The painting, if nothing more, raises an eyebrow to the culture it was taken from. This is an element I enjoy seeing in artwork, the questioning and social commentary of the current culture. I hope to accomplish something similar in my work, with questioning what we have come to know about the media, although I will try to do this without adding any too violent oriented things.
Clash of the Holidays
Sources:
http://artandculturecenter.org/todd-schorr-retrospective
http://www.artbabble.org/video/sjma/todd-schorr-american-surreal-preview
For image: http://www.toddschorr.com/Paintings/image17.html
Miguel Luciano
While looking through Todd Schorr’s paintings, I was vaguely reminded of an artist, Miguel Luciano, who I met and saw artwork of back when I was in high school while doing an internship program. Miguel Luciano was born in Puerto Rico, and focuses his artwork on critiquing politics and pop culture within society. “Luciano’s work addresses the playful and painful exchanges between Puerto Rico and the United States, questioning the efficacy of a colonial relationship that continues to exist today.” (tfaoi.org).
One of his most works, I thought was interesting, the painting entitled, “Exterminio de Nuestros Indios” and this depicted the McDonald’s clown dressed in pilgrim armor with a sword in his hand, standing over a dead Native Indian on the foreground with a Native Indian woman wearing a McDonald’s visor. This is another violent scene including a pop culture icon, that was automatically recognizable, and more obvious in trying to make a statement of commentary. This McDonald’s figure towering over the slain Native Indian, speaks about the conquering of the people, with violence, while the figure in the background wearing a McDonald’s hat, also speaks about conquering the people by way of pushing them into the system. He as an artist, emphasizes using art in an eye opening way to give way to political arguments and social thought. Which I believe is a very good way to use and take advantage of how visual this day in age is.
Sources:
http://www.miguelluciano.com/Bio.html
For image: http://www.miguelluciano.com/More_Paintings.html
