“Is contemporary art authentic, or a manufactured commodity product sold to an ill-informed capitalist consumer?”.
In 2005, to answer this question, Carl Jones used the tools and techniques of Advertising and Contemporary Art to create El Crayolas. This ‘brand’ was circulated in the contemporary art world via art exhibits, billboards, street posters, TV, magazine, and newspaper articles.
The objective was to make art real and authentic by creating content that’s appropriated by metamedia, and broadcast it to the public – throughout the last nine years. Now, these messages have become art.
The El Crayolas project demonstrates that artists in the 21st century are not made of genius, but are a ‘commodity product’ created by a consort of curators, critics, gallery owners, journalists, marketers, and public relations using the metamedia.
The objective of these explorations are to inform the public of how messages are constructed and received, so that the viewer will be empowered to interpret the true meaning behind the communications that they are receiving through various metamedia.
Artist Statement:
“Communications are composed of messages that are sent through a particular medium. Every message has a purpose, to either: inform, persuade, or manipulate. My experience has taught me that communications are designed with the same tools artists use to create artworks.
My creative process and concepts are inspired by thirty years of marketing experience, and the study of both Communication and Advertising theory. Then I appropriate advertising tools and techniques to compose artistic messages.
The objective of my explorations are to inform the public of how messages are constructed and received, so that the viewer will be empowered to interpret the true meaning behind the communications that they are receiving through various metamedia.”
The project is being shown show at La Quinonera Gallery (Santa Cruz 111. Pueblo de la Candelaria, Coyoácan) in Mexico City.