Saturday, 29 April 2017

Creative Strategy - Benjamin JeanJean, Storytelling

True Stories | Benjamin JeanJean from RVCA on Vimeo.

"The essence of my art didn’t change though. I want people to look closer. This is when their imagination kicks in and the unconscious takes over. Skulls, for example, are only skulls at first glance. But in fact, they represent any human: blacks, whites, Syrians, Austrians, Americans, good people, bad people, workers, doctors, politicians, you, me. We all have a skull, we all are human beings. There is a story behind each human, and each story is worth being told." -- Benjamin JeanJean.

This series of work really jumped out at me after watching this RVCA video the other day.

The way Benjamin has employed really detailed and intricate work to tell the stories of refugees is really interesting. They are beautiful images in themselves but they also have deeper stories and symbolism within them to communicate human struggle and a current affairs issue. Aesthetically they are evocative of old tarot cards or etching, which often are also weaved with meaning and symbols and stories.

I have always believed that there is immense value in detail and precise, meditative work. Yes the stories of these refugees could have been told in a few lines or a much simpler image, but Jeanjean has had to sit for hours drawing over each of these and there's something very important about that process and the time spent with the work. The thoughts that he would have had when drawing, the difficulty of the process, the struggle, the effort and the time put in are all reflective of the story he is trying to convey.

No comments:

Post a Comment