RESEARCH ON ARTIST JOSH KEYES
Josh Keyes is a contemporary american painter and printmaker working from Oregon, Portland. Working primarily in acrylics, his pieces are described as "a satirical look at the impact urban sprawl has on the environment and
surmises, with the aid of scientific slices and core samples, what could
happen if we continue to infiltrate and encroach on our rural
surroundings."
Josh Keyes' style is reminiscent of the diagrammatic vocabulary found in
scientific textbook illustrations that often express through a detached
and clinical viewpoint an empirical representation of the natural
world. Assembled into this virtual stage set are references to
contemporary events along with images and themes from his personal
mythology. Josh Keyes' work is a hybrid of eco-surrealism and dystopian
folktales that express a concern for our time and the Earth's future.
I love the visual depth generated in his pieces, and the purposeful way he combines many elements to convey his poignant narrative. Juxtaposing vibrant organic creatures against a backdrop of urban decay and disrepair, his works critique the transient nature of mankind's dominion on earth and asks questions surrounding where true ownership of our planet lies. His use of charismatic megafauna makes his paintings very dynamic and visually engaging, however his realistic painting style makes the dystopian panoramas particularly powerful and bleak. In his works he very much suggests that the key thing we are destroying with our modern attitude is in fact ourselves; no matter how much we may place ourselves on a pedestal, eventually everything returns to nature.
Although his works are very illustrative in style, and are highly narrative based, with a clear theme and message, they still maintain ambiguity and are open to independent interpretation. From repeated feedback across several sessions this is something that has been brought up several times about my practice; being less perscriptive with my narrative and allowing the audience room to assign their own personal meanings. Although I always want the highly important ecological message to come to the forefront of my work, Keyes' style proposed an alternative method of balancing the two; using juxtaposition and dramatic imagery which is contextualised by connotative human experience, to conjour up senses of unease and uncertainty, as we realise things in the scene are not as we would expect in functioning modern life. But his realistic style also conjures a certain poignant beauty, and also suggest freedom, metamorphosis, the passage of time, and hope. These are strong themes which could hold resonance with audiences beyond it's intended narrative.
I love the visual depth generated in his pieces, and the purposeful way he combines many elements to convey his poignant narrative. Juxtaposing vibrant organic creatures against a backdrop of urban decay and disrepair, his works critique the transient nature of mankind's dominion on earth and asks questions surrounding where true ownership of our planet lies. His use of charismatic megafauna makes his paintings very dynamic and visually engaging, however his realistic painting style makes the dystopian panoramas particularly powerful and bleak. In his works he very much suggests that the key thing we are destroying with our modern attitude is in fact ourselves; no matter how much we may place ourselves on a pedestal, eventually everything returns to nature.
Although his works are very illustrative in style, and are highly narrative based, with a clear theme and message, they still maintain ambiguity and are open to independent interpretation. From repeated feedback across several sessions this is something that has been brought up several times about my practice; being less perscriptive with my narrative and allowing the audience room to assign their own personal meanings. Although I always want the highly important ecological message to come to the forefront of my work, Keyes' style proposed an alternative method of balancing the two; using juxtaposition and dramatic imagery which is contextualised by connotative human experience, to conjour up senses of unease and uncertainty, as we realise things in the scene are not as we would expect in functioning modern life. But his realistic style also conjures a certain poignant beauty, and also suggest freedom, metamorphosis, the passage of time, and hope. These are strong themes which could hold resonance with audiences beyond it's intended narrative. 
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