Photographed by Alex John Beck
Alex Da Corte is an American contemporary artist based in Philadelphia. He is a mixed media artist that creates installations full of sculptures and videos. His style consists of the colorful and the surreal. Many of his works feature bold colored walls and carpets, candy colored neon lights, iconic popular cultural symbols and figures, and an aesthetic of corporate commercial advertisement and big box stores (i.e. Target or Walmart).
Da Corte was brought up in Camden, New Jersey and Caracas, Venezuela which are both very different economically. In the U.S. there exists a middle class, however in Caracas the economy is so polarized citizens are either wealthy or poor. Da Corte grew up fascinated with middle class consumerism and mundane objects we see all the time like ketchup. In an interview with Tom Brewer for SSENSE Da Corte described his childhood full of peanut butter sandwiches and thrifted clothing and stated that he was proud of his “cheap” and “low quality” way of life. He goes on to say:
I grew up proud of my sandwiches and thrift stores clothes. And I loved this cheap plastic stuff. Not because it was the best, but because it made me happy. I think I’ve learned to love this big box stores I grew up in, and not in an ironic way, but in a real, earnest way.
He understands he is participant in middle class consumerism and celebrates it. He argues that the middle class is important and the products in big box stores make things more accessible to people who would other-wise be excluded due their social or economic standing. Influence from his childhood gave value to the materials he uses in his art and the mundane, everyday objects he places as the subject of some of his works. For example his installation at Secession in Vienna, Austria titled Slow Graffiti combines a corporate advertisement aesthetic in its atmosphere with the carpeting, furniture and florescent lighting in the ceiling and the sculptures are made up of everyday objects and textures, including: plastic wrap textures, action figures, an umbrella, a fan, boxes, a foldable chair and more.
Alex Da Corte, Slow Graffiti at Secession in Vienna, Austria
Da Corte’s work The Superman takes influence from Andy Warhol eating a hamburger and depicts rapper Eminem eating a bowl of Life cereal. Da Corte takes on the role of Eminem (who is known to be controversial for his lyrics that glorify violence and hostile behavior towards homosexuals and women) and humanizes him. In the simple act of eating a bowl of cereal, viewers see a portrayal of the rapper in a basic and vulnerable state that all humans experience, he no longer seems like unrelatable celebrity that’s out of reach. In watching this short film, viewers are offered no soundtrack or sound effects, only diegetic sounds like a metal spoon scraping against the side of a glass bowl while scooping up cereal and milk. There is no form of escapism for the viewer, they are forced to confront Eminem as a person. Additionally, Da Corte (in the role of Eminem) maintains eye contact with the viewer throughout the video, therefore viewers are not only forced to confront the video but the actual character of Eminem looking back at them and recognizing the presence of the camera and viewer.
Alex Da Corte, The Superman Exhibited at Kölnischer Kunstverein, Köln
Another work of Alex Da Corte that features prominent iconographical figures is his Rubber Pencil Devil. This work is comprised of 57 videos or short films each displaying a widely known popular character that has had an impact on American culture (i.e. Mister Rogers, Sesame Street characters, and the Wicked Witch of the West) and mundane objects (i.e. ketchup and a McDonald’s happy meal). Da Corte portrays majority of the characters in costumes and on sets designed and created by himself and his team, placing value on the colors that are used and the textures of the costumes to best represent the character and their new context. Their work produces an immersive environment and experience for viewers through the use of video, music and architecture. As Eric David eloquently described in his Yatzer article about its exhibition at Prada Rong Zhai in Shanghai, China: “Choreographed in a slow, almost hypnotic tempo, with frequent repetitions and variations of the same scene, the film pulls viewers in, lulling them into a meditative state of heightened perception”.
Alex Da Corte, Rubber Pencil Devil Exhibition at Prada Rong Zhai in Shanghai, China.
Da Corte's exhibition creates a space beyond reality and pushes the value and perception of objects and figures further past their traditional meanings. Generally, within Da Corte's work he tries to capture and display the complexities of consumerism (product consumerism and digital consumerism) and the role they play in impacting social, political and economic policies and perspectives. His works are immersive, however they make the viewer an active participant searching for meaning and interpreting the new context of the figures and or objects.
Citations and Bibliography
“Alex Da Corte.” Art21, art21.org/artist/alex-da-corte/.
Alex Da Corte, alexdacorte.com/about.
“Alex Da Corte. THE SUPERMAN.” Kunstaspekte.de, kunstaspekte.art/event/alex-da-corte-the-superman?hl=en.
Artforum. Vimeo, 1 May 2021, vimeo.com/128638421.
Pogrebin, Robin. “Alex Da Corte Will Bring His Riotous Sensibility to the Met Roof.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 11 Feb. 2021, www.nytimes.com/2021/02/11/arts/design/met-roof-alex-da-corte.html.
Ssense. “Smashing Icons with Alex Da Corte.” Ssense, 7 Aug. 2017, www.ssense.com/en-us/editorial/culture/smashing-icons-with-alex-da-corte.
Yatzer. “Rubber Pencil Devil: Alex Da Corte's Filmic Fantasia Takes Over Prada Rong Zhai.” Yatzer, 2 Dec. 2020, www.yatzer.com/rubber-pencil-devil-alex-da-corte.
Yatzer. “Rubber Pencil Devil: Alex Da Corte's Filmic Fantasia Takes Over Prada Rong Zhai.” Yatzer, 2 Dec. 2020, www.yatzer.com/rubber-pencil-devil-alex-da-corte/slideshow/9.
Yellowtrace, Team. “Alex Da Corte's Slow Graffiti Installation at Vienna Secession.” Yellowtrace, 4 Aug. 2017, www.yellowtrace.com.au/alex-da-corte-slow-graffiti-installation-vienna-secession/.
Comments