Artist St. Francis Elevator Ride’s Eccentric Assemblages, “Lush Interiors”

Memphis based artist Josh Breeden, who goes by the moniker “St Francis Elevator Ride”, works in a variety of mediums, digital and hand-drawn, including collage, print and web media. If his quirky name is any indication, his personality and humor come through in his art: chaotic assemblages that mash-up sexy vintage images with a Pop art aesthetic that are both minimal and psychedelic.

At his website, the artist explains that his eccentric, multi-layered creations are often inspired by the interpersonal relationships between himself and those closest to him. His work explores themes of love, sex, visceral emotions, delusion and the struggles in balancing and maintaining intimacy.

St. Francis Elevator Ride recently completed a new body of mixed media work aimed at “exploring sensual machines”, artificial figures made of everyday objects that are exciting and fun to look at, but up close reveal more gruesome details. Titled “Lush Interiors”, the series is currently being shown at the Memphis Botanic Garden in Tennessee.

The artist shares: “Lush Interiors features two types of compositions: direct to substrate collage prints on birch plywood and multilayered, three-dimensional assemblage pieces constructed using the same printing technique with panels that have been intricately milled and cut by a CNC router. The extravagantly macabre, though often comical, images represent the ways our intended conveniences often become burdens that weigh us down and define us in unintended ways.”