Cal Mingus (He/Him)
My work is an exploration of utilitarian aesthetics, which sets the stage for brief encounters with painterly technique and experiments with provisional methods and materials. This allows me to make works that are stuck between the sketch and the completed artwork, which makes the formalist compositions even further abstracted. Through this, I have found humour in the mundanity of the materials used. This has led me to become interested in the idea of being “in on the joke” that is art history, and how it is read by those that “don’t get it”. Nothing is worse than explaining a joke, thus I have assumed the role of a comedian handing out punchlines with no set-ups.
“UTILE” – Publication
‘UTILE’ is a publication comprised of photographs of “Utility Graffiti” – instructional markings which can be seen on pavements everywhere but are often overlooked. Originally these photos acted as source material for me to develop my older paintings, but I soon realised that I had created an extensive archive of images that were interesting in themselves. The aim of this book is to help people discover these public abstract paintings and their secret language. I ask viewers to consider the origin of creativity, and individual drawing sensibility, as well as where design ends and art begins.
