“Algorithmic Beauty”
2022, Statuario Marble, 6’8” (204cm.)
I created this work reflecting on the relationship between pain and feeling loved in a world driven by AI algorithms. There is no mirror for her selfie because humanity is the mirror. We are all the mirror. “Algorithmic Beauty” has no beauty filters. The marks from plastic surgeries are displayed with grace and dignity like the battle scars of an endless war no one can win.
I wanted to offer a continuation of the Venus de Milo, a sculpture made over 2000 years ago that portrays an immortal Goddess beyond the reach of humans. Today, it's AIs algorithms that have God-like power over humanity. They influence beauty standards with the irresistible promise that those who follow will be rewarded by digital engagement disguised as love. And in the pursuit of that promise people will go through immense physical pain. This made me feel that maybe plastic surgery could be seen as an act of love and commitment to participate in a world of lies we are all part of.
I also chose the Venus de Milo because it is the personification of our “Fake it till you make it era”. When it was discovered in 1820 the Louvre museum actually broke a piece off the sculpture to pretend it was made by a more prestigious artist and time period. By the time people found out it was already the most famous sculpture in the world, and no one cared. Maybe the Venus de Milo is the best metaphor for our social media era; A fictional Goddess hyped with marketing and lies but that we all want to take a picture with.
“No end in sight”
2022, 800 custom handguns polymer/aluminum alloy, cold rolled steel frame and patina. 136 x 123 x 48 inches
“We make war so that we may live in peace”
- Aristotle
When I created this sculpture, I was reflecting on the endless cycle of violence that humanity is seemed to be stuck in as well as the power that symbols have over people.
The guns are meant to be intimidating and the peace sign friendly and the two juxtaposed together represent a metaphor for human nature.
I felt it was also a self-portrait representing the never-ending conflicting between the peace and the violence that exists within me and all of us.
The guns are arranged to cover every angle, all 360 degrees, demonstrating that there is no escape from the cycle – as long as humans are in that loop, we’re always going to be affected, wherever we “stand”. The peace symbol serves as an ironic background meant to represent peace via symbolism.
“Still Lost, still scared”
2022, High Polish Italian Bronze
I created this work reflecting on the amount of money I traded for objects I idolized and worshiped. Until I had them. Cars, watches, clothes, jewelry, they never filled the void I hoped they would. They were inanimate objects that lead me to feel even more alone and empty than before I had traded my gold for them.
Over 3000 years ago a group of humans felt insecure, alone and abandoned, so they used all the gold they had and made themselves a God to worship in the form of a Golden Calf. (Exodus 32). They were looking for the feeling of confidence, of hope, and of feeling loved. They wanted it so bad that they traded everything they had for it. But it did not work then and is not working now.
I was also thinking about the idea that we become what we worship. And now more than 3000 years later the golden calf from the Bible has merged with a human form into the body of a young person with still weak legs that can barely support its own weight to symbolize our humanity. It’s inanimate, empty and unable to feel, reflect or have compassion. At the same time its gold shininess captivates our attention in a hypnotic way that seems to be anchored into our DNA.
Like the golden calf the Supreme shirt is (one of many) symbols of a generation looking to trade their gold/currency to find confidence, love and self worth from an object. We trade our gold for a supreme shirt seeking a spiritual experience. In an almost tragic way looking for our deepest spiritual desires in the shallowest parts of our world.
“The Stoning of Saint Stephen”
2023, 111 x 74 inches, Oil on Canvas
“The surest way to work up a crusade in favor of some good cause is to promise people they will have a chance of maltreating someone. To be able to destroy with good conscience, to be able to behave badly and call your bad behavior 'righteous indignation' — this is the height of psychological luxury, the most delicious of moral treats.”
- Aldous Huxley
The painting depicts “The Stoning of St Stephen”, an event that has been recreated throughout art history, including the first-ever signed painting by Rembrandt.
St Stephen was a man who refused to subscribe to the dominant ideology of his time and was stoned to death for it. His ideas, his speech, and his refusal to conform lead him to be publicly accused first and then murdered by the mob.
The six persecutors and the victim in the painting are genderless and portrayed using the same "default social media avatar." This avatar is meant to be representative of everyone and no one. Our profile photo is actually a reverse mask that covers this avatar we all share. It’s an unalterable aspect of our digital identity.
The oppressors and the victim are depicted as identical, symbolizing moral equivalence and the possibility that anyone can switch roles at any time. The seven individuals in the painting reference the biblical seven deadly sins that have transferred to the digital world. The painting is also a representation of a digital nightmare, where we witness to the disturbing spectacle of online mob justice, reminiscent of the brutal stoning of Saint Stephen. Some participate, some observe, some endure, while advertising profits increase.
“Twitter axe”
2022, Mirror-polished and sharpened stainless steel with color coating. 42.64" x 1.34" x 1.50" in
Have humans become more compassionate over time or have they just grown skilled at creating more powerful tools?”
I was reflecting on how humans, violence and technology interact with each-other. The axe is one of the oldest tools humans invented about 30,000 years ago.
Axes have been used as a tool to decapitate "traitors" not aligned with the cultural ideals of the time for many years. The mob loved it and actively encouraged it.
The axe and Twitter share a parallel distinction as incredibly powerful tools that have impacted the world through their dual capability of creation and destruction.
Tools are an extension of humanity and posses no inherent meaning, they are neither "evil" or “good” they are just a reflection of their users.
Twitter is also a battlefield, mirroring the primal essence of warfare embodied by the axe, with its insatiable hunger for conflict.
Does technology amplify this dynamic or just mirror it?
“You’re Next”
2022, Stainless Steel. 33x32x17 inches
Can compassion exist with social media?
The guillotine is a symbol of the French revolution, a time of deadly reckoning that can be seen as justified and cruel at the same time. When it was created the guillotine was seen as a technological advancement that made punishment more “humane”. In reality, it allowed unskilled labor to easily end a life with the efficiency of a slaughterhouse assembly line.
The guillotine was a very popular spectacle drawing massive crowds where people sold programs and even food stands around it.
Today, the executions moved online on social media platforms and they also often feel justified and cruel at the same time. The spectators of today can easily become the actors of tomorrow in a moment’s notice and deep down everyone knows it.
Is anyone one is pure enough to survive this?
During these social media executions some participate, some watch in silence in fear of being next and the price of ads goes up. Justified or not no one benefits more from these online executions than the social media platforms.
Even the Greeks could not invent a tragedy where the audience does not realize that their pain and suffering is actually the spectacle they paid for.
“Enlightenment”
2023, Oil on canvas, Louis XIV frame: Gilded wood flower-corner frame, & rinceaux. 58 x 55 x 6 in
I was reflecting on how most humans today share such an incredibly deep and intimate relationship with their smartphones. So much more than another object, it is the most powerful mass-produced object ever invented. It’s not a tool but a window into most of our souls. Smartphones hold within them the secrets, aspirations, and very essence of the individuals who carry it, rivaling the power and intimacy once only attributed to religious experiences.
I was inspired by Christian imagery of the 18th century, especially The Sacred Heart of Jesus by Pompeo Batoni. The smartphone’s light represents the religious almost God-like power these devices have in our lives.
The painting is also framed in a Louis XIV 17th-century frame as a metaphor to our current era. I wanted to nod to the “The Age of Enlightenment” right before the French Revolution.
Could we be on the brink of an era-defining change? The intersection of these two forces, technology, and social discontent, may lead to a future revolution that is as significant as the French Revolution and where the smartphones would play the central role.
The period even featured a climate change crisis: “The Little Ice Age” with low temperatures created poor crop—all of which led to a culture of violent scapegoating and the resurgence of witchcraft trials. During which people were humiliated, ‘exposed’, and eventually burnt alive – This echoes with our current cancel culture leveraged by technology. People are "exposed" and canceled always under the guise of a righteous cause. So much of our culture can be directly traced back to the Enlightenment. So to understand that age, is to better understand ourselves.