Bath 2021

Editor: Here we have James Jean's "Bath," created in 2021, made with acrylic paint. I find the figure in the bowl really striking and quite unsettling. How should we interpret this work? Curator: Looking at this piece from a materialist perspective, consider first the acrylics. This allows for those highly saturated, almost artificial colours, which aligns it with a certain visual culture driven by mass production. And consider the production process, does the surreal, digital-like aesthetic suggest anything to you? Editor: I'm not sure... Like it's fabricated, not real? Curator: Exactly. Think about the relationship between digital image production and labor. Does it remove the hand of the artist in some way? The figure is trapped, almost consumed. Is that the material reality of the modern human condition? The production of art reflects the labor structures around us. Editor: It makes me wonder, does this ‘bowl’—shaped like a head—hint at consumption? Of media, maybe, or the self, presented via social media? Curator: Precisely! Reflect on what this tells us about materiality; how do we assign 'value' to a hand-painted piece in a world saturated with images? This returns us to consider process as labor, both materially, and even conceptually. Editor: That’s interesting; I hadn’t considered that the means of production have so much to say about the message itself! Curator: Indeed. Understanding materials and means challenges assumptions. Consider what the artist consumes. And therefore, by extension, produces. Editor: It's eye-opening to consider not only what the art represents, but how it was materially created. Curator: And the socio-economic system that enables both representation, and material. A perfect framework for deeper appreciation.