Jon Elliot

From Essay:

I want to stress that my work is about our current cultural landscape, and not about some apocalyptic future devoid of humanity.

This body of work presents a shadow history that runs concurrently with the commonly acknowledged present, it’s imagery rising from the murky waters of cultural memory, delving into the meanings of a range of ideologically charged symbols and motifs, and not merely a moralistic narrative about abuse of environment and the humanity within.

I investigate and utilize the imagery and symbolism of technological ideology and mythology, and how these images and symbols reinforce a sense of dominance over the environment, and over the rest of humanity. In recent work, I have forced together elements of this imagery, with visions of their unacceptable consequences. These are skeptical paintings, depicting mounds of old and obsolete computers and televisions rupturing the crisp, wire-frame facade of virtualesque scapes.

Computers and televisions – these amalgams of plastic, heavy metals, and other toxic wastes, these transmitters of fantasy, ideology, identity, and creators of virtual worlds, are the most powerful tools we have ever created. Our imaginations have been co-opted. They feed us our fantasies (conveniently prepackaged for product identification,) they offer us alternative communities, entertain, and fill our lives with meaning. The internet has also become the largest archival source of information available, and most of us in our particular society has access to this archive. The cultural importance of these objects is obvious, and has never been questioned. What isn’t as obvious about these objects, what we frequently ignore is what happens when they become garbage. (Continue reading essay . . .)

Jon Elliot’s Website

Thanks to dontgohere for finding this artist!