Bridge#2

Theme: Consumerism

Object: Apple

When the word “apple” is being mentioned, do you first think of a type of fruit on the shelf or on the tree? Or even, is the first image coming up to mind an electronic device? Every person I asked turned back and asked me “wait, the ‘Apple’ apple, or just the eaten apple?” And at least for Google, it can only think of this technology company when asked.

5 Diptychs:

1. Mature

Perspective changes over time usually along with coming of age. Children barely realise the monetary value of things and would not compare. I used marker which can both be the childish art tool, and professional designer material. The sketchy one referring to the naive childhood where apple is just a kind of fruit they are made to eat, while for the adults, this item began to stands for a lot more things: the certificate of their living quality, their class, their taste… All of these becomes a shadow casted.

2. Organic

I interviewed some people round me, and nobody could answer what being organic means, and barely anyone knows why organic food is good. This way, what I can speculate is that the reason that organic apples are always more popular is because of its high price, which means that people think that organic means expensive, and expensive means good. I use print making to show not only mass-production, but also that even if all the apples are the same, the crowd would just go for the ones with “good” tags on them. They purchase not for the product, but for the tag. And the unnatural pink also add onto the absurdity of this grocery Consumerism.

  • What conversation happened between each image in this diptych?

The left image of apples is in contrast to the image on the right of organic apple, in order to show that nobody wants normal apple, but with an organic tag, only one is left from the rob.

  • How was the medium selected successful at supporting the content of your object, form, or image? (if it was not as successful as others, why?)

Print making is successful because it is a kind of mass production just like the products. It also ensures that each apple is just the same with the slightest difference which indicates that they were lives.

 

3. Gold Apple

The empty sign of an apple with one bite is worth $1000, while an apple core which carries the seeds of lives are worthless? I made a hollow Apple apple and a apple core with gold leaves. Gold leaves are supposed to show, for the first image, the ostentation in appearance but without substance, for the second one, the apple seeds which has always been the symbol of hope and life. I think there is also the contrast between the view of our society and the view some hundred years ago.

4.Religion

Religiously, apple is the forbidden fruit in the garden of eden. however, I read an news article about that the technology Apple is becoming a new religion (http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/gaming.gadgets/05/19/apple.religion/index.html), with all those tattoos of Apple, weddings in Apple store, pilgrimages at Apple store. I choose to do it with a sketchy type of graphic pencil work to suggest that this seeming “league” in our society is actually an unfinished work, still at the beginning stage. The balance means the competing weight and that religion and Consumerism can both make the society stable.

5. America

Eve took the somewhat green fruit down from the tree and handed it to someone. This happened at the beginning of earth; however, the situation now is that the American eagle, as the lead of the world grabbed the mature forbidden fruit, but the sharp claws cracked it and the juice is bleeding out and dripping. The apple is also a symbol of the world. Acrylic is the artificial material mimicking oil paint, which is just another type of plastic. Using this material to paint in the Renaissance style realistic painting create a contrast between our highly developed world and the heavenly image of this world which we picture in our mind.

  • What conversation happened between each image in this diptych?

The left is in contrast to the right for the hands are from the last moment of human’s innocence while the claws are my expectation of the doomsday.

  • How was the medium selected successful at supporting the content of your object, form, or image? (if it was not as successful as others, why?)

Acrylic mimics oil paint successfully but still leave a hint of its artificial value. It gives the image a Renaissance attempt.

  • How did the materiality (medium used) affect the content or meaning of the individual artworks?

Acrylic is the artificial material mimicking oil paint, which is just another type of plastic. Using this material to paint in the Renaissance style realistic painting create a contrast between our highly developed world and the heavenly image of this world which we picture in our mind.

  • What did you learn about your content through this medium exploration?

I found that acrylic itself as a paint can have such meaning, in comparison to real oil paint.

  • How did the medium you used change the context of your object, form, or image?

I did not change anything, but added onto the meaning of the comparison.

  • What websites / books / museums / galleries / other artists did you research during this process for ideas and inspiration?

The Cult of Mac/Amusing ourselves to death

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