My art is a combination of socio-political commentary, humour and culinary
methodologies. I make work in response to the issues that I feel are of significance,
often conflating our contemporary situation with nineteenth and twentieth
century history. I sense amnesia and confusion in most of the developed world,
illustrated by a denial of dysfunction through the therapy of commodity and
nostalgia. Financial concerns and cultural fragilities threaten the stability
of our society and I would like to think of myself as a commentator on these
issues.
My practice employs a broad range of technical applications including video, print, performance and cookery. It is generally a process of appropriating and contorting that, which already exists, resulting in a layering of historical sediments and collisions of significance. The materials that I use are often intrinsically connected with the image or text that they portray, such as the herbs and spices that make up my special G20 screen ink used in the work ‘Drool’ 2010. The notion of reproducibility through processes such as screenprinting, video and Internet is a significant element in the temporary nature of my installations. Here, the denial of ownership parries with the reality of the cultural commodity.
Carl Rowe