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The New Contemporary Art Magazine
Tennessee based sculptor Matthew Dutton once described his works as "whimsical horrors", animal-human curiosities that are often seen lurking in assemblages of household objects. The idea of material manipulation first struck Dutton as a child, when he would build his own toys out of scrap construction materials and take things apart to see what was on the inside. Inspired by the combinations of human and animal forms that have appeared throughout art history to pop-culture, specifically Jim Henson's creatures in the 80s films Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal, Dutton's art employs a hybrid of visual symbols using a multitude of textures and materials. His sculptures are intended to take their viewer on a journey into surreal realms, "a larger world that dwells within their creator".
First featured in Hi-Fructose Vol. 8, and soon, our exhibition with Virgina MOCA in 2016, Barnaby Barford builds vignettes and installations out of found figurines that he cuts up and reassembles. The objects he uses for his materials are some that most people would dismiss in their original form, but Barford's art makes them relevant and alluring. For his latest installation, "Tower of Babel", the artist's process began when he cycled over 1,000 miles to photograph facades from each of London's postcodes.
Mexican artist Damián Ortega (covered here) reconceptualizes everyday objects in his sculptural installations. For twenty years, his creative interests have lied in the deconstruction of form and how things are assembled. His solo exhibition at HangarBiocca in Milan, Italy, "Casino," is also a retrospective of his most famous works through today. This includes his new installation, "Zoom," made for the event. The experience of viewing his artwork has been described as "explosive," displaying a burst of energy, like an exploding star. Objects and vehicles such as his Volkswagon Bug, "Cosmic Thing," (2002) are transformed as a critique about technological innovation. See more after the jump.