ISSUE #01 : the state we're in
Victor Seaward, Nebelmeer (detail) 2019
Victor Seaward
Victor Seaward (b.1988 Kuala Lumpur) is a London-based artist investigating the agency of things. His practice unpacks the material history of both objects and concepts examining how they interact with our ever-advancing visual culture. From the consistent content shift towards digital in the last decade to COVID-19's influence on our virtual visibility, Seaward's practice addresses from a myriad of angles - The State We're In.
Concurrently, Victor’s use of references, materials and production methods speak in dialogue with one another and often draw on history to bring attention to our contemporary condition. This includes his concrete paintings combining the utilitarian nature of concrete with Modernist aesthetics, and the advanced precision of 3D printing to (re)produce rare and invaluable artefacts. Further pushing these dialectical boundaries, is Victor’s work Nebelmeer where his initial reference to an iconic romantic painting, Caspar David Friedrich’s Der Wanderer über dem Nebelmeer (Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog), is transformed into a moving installation and insta-spectacle meme.
Particularly relevant to the theme, The State We’re In, is Victor’s recent work Nebelmeer. The title is in reference to Caspar David Friedrich’s masterpiece Der Wanderer über dem Nebelmeer (Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog). Friedrich's painting is considered to be the quintessential example of Romanticism. Victor’s version, an assemblage turned meme of his own studio debris including test models and failed experiments mediated by a moving fog, warps this original idealism by purposely reducing it to an insta-spectacle. Our current contemporary state is reflected in Victor’s action of taking an iconic romantic figurative painting from 1818 on a conceptual journey resulting in a brief digital clip, ideal for viewing on social media.
