5 Powerful Artworks That Make You Think
The power of art is undeniable. In the words of American actor Harvey Fierstein, “art has the power to transform, to illuminate, to educate, inspire and motivate” which is undoubtedly true. Art also has the power to forge new narratives, reinterpret our preconceived notions that aid with the progression and advancement of society. Notably, these 5 pieces by emerging artists from the Boynes Emerging Artist Award all have something in common: they provoke thought. Each one can be interpreted differently depending on the viewer, but each work is undeniably provocative. It’s time to put our thinking caps on!
1. “U.S. (Unwholesome shelter)” by 江峰 Jiang Feng
江峰 Jiang Feng is a non-gendered and multi-disciplinary Taiwanese artist who works in multiple genres, namely, in movement/dance, theatre, performance art, voice, text, modelling, film, photography, and theory. Feng holds a Foreign Languages and Literatures & Chinese Literature (Double major) B.A. from the National Taiwan University in Taiwan as well as a Performance and Performance Studies M.F.A. from Pratt Institute in New York City. Their performance works have been showcased across the world, in countries such as Taiwan, the U.S., Germany, Ireland, Bulgaria, Singapore, and Hungary.
Feng was awarded 2nd place in the 2nd Edition with winning work “U.S. (Unwholesome Shelter)” which is part of a series that “juxtaposes the torn and dirty USian flag with the naked bodies of all genders, races, sexuality, nationality, and cultural backgrounds. [Feng is] interested in critiquing the United States as the dreamland and shelter for people and immigrants. The U.S. was alleged to be the most open and tolerant country but it fails to welcome people from various backgrounds equally. This series aims to document and capture people's bodies, their vulnerability, emotions, and strength through/with the cut USian flag.” This photograph truly makes us think about the country’s turbulent history characterized by gender inequalities, racial and ethnic tensions, as well as socio-political issues and injustices. The tears in the flag can depict the worn-out nature and inconsistencies of a prejudice system that thrives of an idyllic symbol of the American Dream which has encouraged immigration but the reality of it, as illustrated by this piece is that there exist various devisive factors that threaten and damage the workings of systems often geared against minorities and people of colour. I think that the title of this piece is so clever and interesting because it’s a play on words of the acronym “US” traditionally denoting the countries name but in this case alluding to the at times precarious experiences of minorities in the US. The term “unwholesome” also intertwines as a homophone with the concept of the holes in the flag captured by Jiang Feng.
When asked about the inspirations behind his work in an interview with Founder of Boynes Emerging Artist Award, Chantal Boynes, Feng simply said that it was social and political incidents, before elaborating that “There is so much inequality but also beauty in life, intertwined together around and within me. When I see and feel something, I flow it out.”
2. “FAT CAT” BY IRA UPIN
Ira Upin is a finalist in both the 2nd and 4th Editions of Boynes Emerging Artist Award. This extraordinary artist hails from Chicago where he resided in both city and suburbs. In an interview with Founder, Chantal Boynes, Upin describes his love and talent for art as a “trait [that] was obviously innate in [his] DNA” which he explored from a young age by “instinctively creating things, inventing, building, drawing, whatever, it didn’t matter what.”
His art pursues themes such as power, strength, and aging such as in his winning oil on panel painting in the 4th edition, “Fat Cat” which was inspired by his experiences when dealing with large-scale building developers in his role as a co-chair of his neighborhood zoning committee. “The ideas of arrogance, sense of power, and ego were always center stage with these personalities and made me further ponder the concept of strength. It’s a part of a series that is a psychological examination of the ideas about strength, weakness, power, and self-identity. All brought on by the real concept, for me, of aging.”
In his interview, he explains that he always found himself trying to tell a story - “A lot of it was sort of a running narration of my own existence. But I would always try to make the story have some sort of metaphorical meaning. I want the viewer to be encouraged to ponder the image and have it impart some value of thought regardless of whether that thought was what I as the artist intended.” Upin’s work redefines and provides a fresh perspective on the inevitable process of aging because it is often devalued but he attributes power and strength to these life changes that help us to not be fearful, weary or, ashamed of the natural process. In essence, it’s a means of empowering and relating to his viewers because frequently society can perpetuate beliefs that look down on natural qualities of the human condition and by extension, life itself.
He solely works with oil paints to execute this series as they produce the smooth consistency that he loves which “cannot be matched by any other medium.” He also states that he uses the technique of photo reference as a source for his paintings but not as a finished product and this process would also help him to capture the realism and relate the realities of the themes that he pursues.
3. “the boot” by tom ferson
Tom Ferson is an Australian artist based in Melbourne who was earned a BFA from COFA (College of Fine Art) in Sydney. Ferson was awarded a Finalist Place in the 3rd Edition of the Boynes Emerging Artist Award with his winning work and acrylic and coloured pencil on polyester, “The Boot”. He describes in his interview that “this painting is part of a body of work that explores different expressions of intimacy. The work speaks literally and metaphorically about power relationships. The subjects are partners and good friends of mine.” As we can see in the painting, it’s a narrative about challenging the traditional power dynamic between men and women in society. Traditionally, women are seen as inferior to men. Our place was limited to the kitchen and the house coupled with the role of raising children as opposed to men who were deemed as the breadwinner. I’m sure we can agree that these ideologies are outdated, bias and inaccurate. We’ve seen the archaic trend of thought that women are supposed to be submissive beings but what I love about Ferson’s painting is that it disputes this entirely through colour symbolism and the symbol of the boot. Firstly, the colour red complements the piece and the message because it is often associated with power, confidence, and intensity. Equally, the boot being positioned on the man’s face can represent the opposition to the unjust ideologies of female submission. It challenges the narrative of men being superior by empowering and giving women agency over their lives through his incitement of discourse.
Finally, it’s apparent that Ferson’s stylistic choices are purposeful as he explains that “the great majority of the work I have created has been painted using acrylics, which has really affected the way I think about using paint. In recent years I have explored what can be achieved with oil paint, and I've focussed on introducing elements of expressive looseness into some of the work. In general, I tend to use whatever will best suit a concept.”
4. “Monologue 1” by angela alés
The captivating artist, Angela Alés was born in Barranquilla, Colombia, and is of Andalusian and Lebanese descent. She migrated to the United States in 1984 and graduated from Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, in New York City in 1993. She later received her MFA from the Miami International University of Art and Design. Alés has also participated in over 40 collective and individual exhibitions across the US, Central, and South America. Her work can be found in private collections in the Americas and Europe. She was awarded her place as a Finalist in the 2nd Edition with her winning work, mixed media on canvas “Monologue 1”.
In her interview, she expresses that “the series Monologue captures the emotions and inner thoughts of individual archetypes. It is about seeing the inner truth when one looks in the mirror. It is a window that invites the viewer to introspection. This painting incorporates photo transfer using a turn of the century photograph that has been scanned and manipulated in photoshop. The background has been transferred as well. The rest of the painting is made with oil paint.” It is evident from her depiction that the mind navigates the complexity and sometimes chaotic reflection of emotions, thoughts, behaviours, and personalities that are influential and universal characteristics of humankind. It’s truly interesting that she develops her imagery on the basis of fossils, landscapes, and personality traits suggesting that environmental, social, and innate factors influence our thought processes and our perceptions of the world.
Notably, Alés draws inspiration from life, sociopolitical issues, and current realities. She speaks about her current place in her artistic journey by saying “My artistic process has in large part been both the means of searching for spiritual and philosophical meaning in my life as well as the act of recording this search. Throughout this journey, recurring symbols and icons have solidified into my personal language. Most recently, my socio-political experiences as a Latin American, immigrant, and female artist have come to the forefront of my inner dialogue and have coalesced as a central theme of my artistic voice.”
5. “COAL ASH” BY ELIZABETH LAPIDES
Elizabeth LaPides is an East coast raised, California-based artist who “focuses on climate change and its science-fiction history of visuals and metaphors.” In her artist bio, she reveals that her practice started with photography and traveling around the world, including time spent deep in the Amazonian jungle documenting fungi. Her research about climate change began while she was pursuing her undergraduate degree at Massachusetts College of Art and this interest has continued into her graduate work at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University. She finds inspiration in the visual language of science fiction, real science, and nature which prompts her to create work that captures the psychological and emotional effects of our changing environment. LaPides was awarded a place as a Finalist in the 4th Edition with her winning digital collage “Coal Ash”.
It’s apparent that LaPides has a profound consciousness for the environment which she translates into her art. This stems from her belief in “the power of art to create meaningful connections and inspire positive changes drives my passion for non-profit work with [her] local community building environmental awareness campaigns and is a solid part of my teaching philosophy.”
She explains that her artistic journey is derived from being “deeply inspired by nature and our connection within the circle of life. [She is] influenced by the writings of Daniel Quinn’s Ishmael, Doug Boyd’s Rolling Thunder, and the artwork of British sculptor Andy Goldsworthy. They communicate and illustrate humanity as a part of nature rather than separate entities; creating a space for me to feel connected to the Earth in a way that is wholly fulfilling.” As shown in “Coal Ash”, her work examines the impact of humans on nature which she describes as “the myth of human dominance over nature; our journey from sustainable land practices to the environment under capitalism.” We can clearly see a direct reflection of the harmful effects that humanity has caused on the environment portrayed in this digital collage. LaPides states that “a new landscape dawns of toxic fumes, red tides, and never-ending pavement eerily similar to the landscapes of those found in post-apocalyptic science fiction. My work explores this doomsday imagery found both in reality and Sci-Fi. I blend the worlds into beautiful terrifying depictions of our current environment and possible future. Art is a way for me to reconcile with the impending apocalypse and the psychological effects of climate change. I look for the beauty in the changing world, accepting what nature we will lose in our lifetime and trying to find a glimmer of hope in the life that will find a way. I use the aesthetic language of science fiction to amplify the current environmental pollution and as a tool to envision the future of our Earth. I use photography on the ground or in the sky, sculpture, and mixed media methods to create pieces that inspire the awe I feel when standing before the changing Earth.”
Her work “Coal Ash” depicts the scene of various coal ash pond spills after Hurricane Florence along the Cape Fear River in North Carolina, and a burned forest in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. A sense of destruction and decay manifests itself within the imagery that should act as a wake-up call for mankind, especially regarding the impact and consumption of non-sustainable sources of energy such as fossil fuels. The toxic environment provoked by man’s carelessness and disregard for other living organisms sparks the ongoing conversation about turning to sustainable energy to help mitigate this particular damaging impact of man at the expense of nature and truly assess our consequences on the planet we call home.
In conclusion, these are only a handful of the many powerful artworks that make us question and think about our beliefs and what it means to be human. We hope you enjoyed these pieces as much as we did because they remind us how important creativity and curiosity is in this world. Feel free to share your interpretations, and views on these 5 remarkable pieces in the comments. We’d love to hear from you and learn about your perspectives on these pivotal and ongoing discussion topics.