Saturday, 25 July 2015

Context of Practice 3: Contextual Reference

Ralph Steadman's Disneyland Drawings

Steadman's work is clearly some of the more important contributions to illustration, or to art in general. His Disneyland studies seem to convey the passive consumer slavery. The imagery is paired with some amount of gonzo writings, and to some effect it is similar to Fear and Loathing. Again, the artist is dealing with a simulacra, faced with the absurdity of their own situation in an environment built to entertain and sell.

The artwork is vividly haunting. Disneyland seems to Steadman a traumatic prisoner camp full of 'screaming children'. I really enjoy the subversion of a place of self-proclaimed happiness as a something much darker, to the extent that I would like to employ something similar in my own work.



I would suggest however that I might go further, and employ colouration to exaggerate further that core subversion, for example using the bright saturated colours associated with brands and merchandise.

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