Tappan presents New Yorker Michael DeSutter, whose richly layered work will brighten your walls
Bound by a search for creativity and authenticity, AnOther has partnered with L.A.-based art collective Tappan, an initiative that was born out of a desire to reinvent the experience of buying art, to share stories about its artists.
Brooklyn-based artist Michael DeSutter is breathing new life into the traditional form of collage. Creating large scale, colourful compositions made from archives of vintage magazine and book clippings, DeSutter sums up his work in three simple words: “Flip. Clip. Paste.” His art explores movement through the formal qualities of high fashion photography and everyday imagery, embracing the concept of abstraction. Whilst his digital background in graphic design is evident through the vividness and fluidity of the shapes he creates, DeSutter is keen to emphasize the visual difference in simplified forms. When a jumble of clippings are merged together to create one seamless and flowing image, a peaceful sense of unity is derived from the potential of chaos.
It wasn’t until the artist stopped to reflect on the completed body of work, that he was able to notice the subconscious elements that drove it. A major influence was the breakup of his 11-year relationship, a catalyst for investing more time into his art, and a significant period of upheaval. “The bigger series was created as I was coming out of my marriage, and in a lot of the pieces, I was literally a character in these collages,” he explains. “It was about my relationship, very plainly. There’s a piece that I made that has a central male character, abstracted between two figures. There’s a moving truck, furniture and things, and I realised, ‘Oh, this is me moving out.’”
A large part of DeSutter’s work is about “having subtractions and elements connected in weird ways,” he says, becoming a reflection of the subconscious mind. After all, “There’s often no logic pattern at all in the ways in which we think”. He subtly makes the connection between our conscious and unconscious trains of thought, transforming small, separate details into one unrestricted and communicative form. The result is captivating.
For more information on Michael DeSutter, and to buy his works, visit Tappan.
