"Agora 1"
Photo by Charles Benton
charlesbentonphotography.tumblr.com


My work is about humanity. The metaphor for my interest is the city square. The city square is the nexus of humanity. Historically they were called agoras (Greek) and served as a meeting place for people to openly discuss issues. The square functions as the heart of the city and the intersection of human interaction. It is the site for political discourse, civil demonstration and military pageantry. In my work, I use these sites as a framework to address divisions in the socio-political climate and to present possible solutions of unity and freedom.

There is a predominance of societal systems setting their focus on the images that separate people. Their signifiers encourage hierarchies, highs and lows, haves and have nots. Through my work, I seek to flatten these economies. Abstraction is a savior that unifies disparate elements using non-representational fields of activity on one surface. Color and form are the metaphors for anonymous humanity.

In making the work, I create collage paintings and assemblages made from paint, plastic, paper, canvas and tape. The visceral surface is inked and its topography is transferred to paper. The paper is then collaged along with painting and drawing marks to form a cohesive and unified work. I view the city square and my work as freedom sites where individual properties can co-mingle in harmonious discourse.