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| Stephen Rumney |
 | Biography: CONSUMER REALISM
Stephen Rumney coined the phrase 'Consumer Realism' to describe his one man show 'Vision 2000' at the 1 Off gallery in Soho, central London in 1999. Consumer Realism is best described by Rumney himself. The following extract is taken from the artist notes of the Vision 2000 show:
Consumer Realism: In Rumney's own words
ART FOR THE SOUNDBITE GENERATION
Consumer Realism is art for the Soundbite Generation. To create works that are relevant to today's world I paint with the artifacts of modern consumerism. My canvas is recycled urban junk. I am surrounded by the madness of modern commercialism and a civilisation based on materialism.
REALITY AND REALISM
As an artist who wants to record the unique world we live in there is no better medium than reality itself to capture the spirit of our time. Consumer Realism does not try to create another ‘ism’ for the sake of appearing to be clever. Its purpose is transparent. Consumer Realism packages itself to sell itself. Firstly it expresses the climate of our time and reflects how art has itself become a commodity governed by fads and market forces.
CONSUMERISM – THE COLLECTIVE EXPERIENCE OF MODERN CULTURE
The consumption and accumulation of products from the high street is the collective experience of the consumer generation. Most of us now live within a strange synthetic world that cocoons us from the natural universe.
REALISM v TRADITIONAL STYLE
We live in a time of such rapid change and diversity that traditional forms of art constrict our ability to see what is really going on. In the past art has shown a distorted reality, a world manipulated by the artist, further fenced in by the styles of the time.
USING REALISM TO REFLECT THE MADNESS OF MODERN CULTURE
Consumer realism makes no effort to manipulate the truth and attempts to reflect the paradoxes and madness that surrounds us as we move into a critical millennium where the consequence of society’s material development puts our very existence at risk.
THE VISION OF OUR FUTURE
The whole of the world is now delicately interlocked in pursuit of material wealth and my work tries to deconstruct the hypocrisy and web we are all caught up in. Although the raw materials that make up my work are borrowed from the past the story that unfolds is the vision of our future.”
Stephen Rumney's current work:
THE NEW WAVE OF MODERN ART
In the new modern world driven by digital technology and global communicatio... to see complete biography, click on artists name Country: United Kingdom Birthyear: 1960 Galleries: 1 Off Gallery, Soho London
BuyModernArt.com. Greenwhich, London
Paul Smith, Covent Garden, London Media: other, Found Objects Style: other, Consumer Realism Subjects: other, Consumer Society |
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