Priscilla Bracks is a visual artist practising in photography,
digital illustration, and installation. Her practice
explores the human condition and world we inhabit.
She is especially interested in chaos, change,
the patterns chaos creates, and the way these
factors impact upon personal, social and
national identities. Galleries containing images from
each body of work she has produced can be seen at
www.priscillabracks.com.
Priscilla Bracks, Charmed, 2005.
Digital Print, archival carbon pigment
on acid free paper, 42 x 60 cm.
(from the series Refugee from the Human State).
Her latest body of work, Making the Empire Cross is on show at
Intrude Gallery 122 Gertrude St, Fitzroy Melbourne from 23 March
to 5 April. Making the Empire Cross is an episodic series of lenticular
images, which take an irreverent look at contemporary geo-political
figures and events. The images in Episode 1: Unleashed! form a loose
narrative featuring a motley cohort of plastic toys dressed in custom
made costumes, and set against illustrated comic backgrounds.
They come to life playing out scenarios which are in many ways less
ridiculous than the reality of the politics they parody.
In addition to the major lenticular pieces, the work also includes
a website - http://www.making-the-empire-cross.com,
and a set of small lenticular collectible cards.
Priscilla Bracks, Show Me Yours and I’ll Show You Mine, 2005.
Lenticular Image, Archival Digital Print,
75 x 50 cm.
"After the commencement of the Afghanistan war, I was not sure whether
I should be more disturbed by the war itself, or the abundance of cheap war
toys which seemed to flood the market at that time. My response was to collect
them over a period now spanning 4 years. Gradually they formed the basis for
this work, the darker side of which ponders the ways in which popular culture
and media have been used to make the case for a conflict which is relatively
unsupported outside fundamentally conservative communities
(of all religious persuasions)."
Priscilla Bracks http://www.making-the-empire-cross.com/about/
Priscilla Bracks, GI Joe v. Jihad Joe, 2005.
Lenticular Image, Archival Digital Print,
75 x 75 cm.
"...Making the Empire Cross abounds with comic book convention in an attempt
to reveal the “truth” behind news and how this connects with entertainment.
Using lenticular photography, lush, glossy and colourful, Bracks exploits our
fascination with the faux third dimension and perhaps childhood memories of
playing with lenticular rulers and kitsch religious post cards. She then
presents her work on a simulated movie website with all the trappings
including the making of, characters, a narrative, behind the scenes, stars
and gossip. Based on current news footage the characters are recognisable
and audiences are instantly familiar with both them and their story, be it truth
or fiction...
So familiar is her territory, and this is the point, that even where the names
have been changed no one is actually protected. On the contrary, this work is
accusatory and the artist is not afraid to point the finger. One feels, however,
that faithful to documentary style Bracks is attempting to generate a distance
from the issues she is dealing with. Whilst she clearly has a view and her audience
is well aware of this, part of her satire can be found in this scarcely disguised
distancing from the issues she is dealing with. In other words her story attempts,
and needs to fail at fair reportage as she implicates all of the characters,
“good” and “evil”, without fear or favour."
David Broker, Director Canberra Contemporary Art Space
(Exhibition Catalogue 2006)
Priscilla Bracks, Shiva's Nemesis, 2005.
Lenticular Image, Archival Digital Print,
75 x 75 cm.
Priscilla is currently working on Episode 2 in Making the Empire Cross series,
which has the current working title: The All in Brawl.
This work will be presented at Kings ARI in
Melbourne in February 2007.
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Feel free to visit:
http://www.priscillabracks.com
