RACHEL MACLEAN: WOT U :-) ABOUT? - Tate Britain

In this exhibition I really enjoyed how Maclean's work parody's familiar subjects such as advertisement and social media in order to make us question the techniques and motivations of the media, this piece makes the viewer think twice about the impact and purpose off such routine familiar things such as social media and modern technology.

The main focal point of the exhibition was the film, this was then accompanied by six posters displayed to the side of the screen relating to images and characters from the film (for example seen in Fig.1). I really enjoyed the presentation of these posters, they were draped like huge political banners reminiscent to a scene from history. This reference was very interesting as the very serious presentation masked by the childlike imagery resulted in a interesting Juxtaposition.

The content of these posters also really interested me, they borrowed many images relevant to today such as selfies and digital shapes but then contrasted with a composition similar to renaissance painting (Fig.2). This renaissance composition of figures placed on heavenly clouds is something I have always been drawn to. I visited Italy this summer and whenever I was viewing renaissance paintings I always found myself being drawn to the sky and how the clouds were used as a platform for figures. The reference to religion alongside mundane objects such as a cup of coffee and a smart phone was very effective as it gives these objects the illusion of being sacred and all-powerful. This is perhaps commenting on how in todays society these are the things we really value and worship replacing the illusion once fulfilled by religion.

(Fig.1)

(Fig.2)