British painter Justin Mortimer (b. 1970) renders his own interpretation of the human condition in
oils, characterized by a blend of photorealism and painterly strokes.
Anachronistic in tone, Mortimer’s work combines imagery sourced from a range of
disparate sources to arrive at a unique aesthetic, which often explores the
dividing line between ‘us’ and ‘them’, juxtaposing the idyllic and the
atrocious to create a dynamic uneasiness. Mortimer’s palette includes but is
not necessarily limited to hues cooled by their complimentary, and exemplifies
an eye adept at witnessing light’s relationship to form, including its absence
resulting in chiaroscuro reminiscent
of painters such as Dutch Master, Rembrandt. Mortimer’s paintings, however,
attempt to deny the persistence of a singular historical narrative, to
transcend the linear insistence of time in order to demolish the arbitrary geographical,
and temporal demarcations ubiquitous with History’s limited gaze. Never before
in human history have we been able to gaze so far across space and time to
discover a subjectivity, once quashed by geographical, and ideological myopia,
now liberated, if not at times confused, by a rhizomatic view of reality. Thus,
there is little if any shock in learning Mortimer’s imagery is often sourced by
that most omnipresent of infrastructures, the internet. A virtual landscape
with no perceivable horizon, receding by the nanosecond, provides no shortage
of narrative fodder, and as our worldview bloats it becomes apparent there is
no ‘them’, if ever there was, there is only ‘us’ and we are each other’s
responsibility.
Family Dollar, 2009 Oil on Panel, 80 x 60cm
David Trigg's critical appraisal of Mortimer's work is well worth repeated examination, as is the wealth of information contained here.
Note: Mortimer's anachronistic compositions resonate with my own practice aims; collapsing notions of space and time in an attempt to deprive the audience of a comfortable space, inciting critical engagement with the imagery confronting them.
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