me, me, me

The real problem, as I see it, is not the specific consumer choices that I've chosen to poke fun of in some of my more recent paintings, but rather the unspoken, unquestioned attitudes behind these choices. Rampant consumerism is a source (or at least an agitator) of all sorts of problems in our culture. The advertising industry breeds discontent and encourages us to buy our way into meaningfullness. It capitalizes on our baser longings and tells us that posessions will complete us.

This attitude is predicated on a culture founded on "enlightened" humanistic individualism which, while pretending to be all about the "actualization of boundless human potential", in reality is a fanatical religion of selfishness. Everyone is encouraged to do what is right in their own eyes on the assumption that the collective result will be goodness and joy. But you know what assuming does, don't you? It makes an ASS of U and ME!

We are taught, without any further instruction, to look out for number one, and thereby end up living in a way that diminishes even ourselves. Why? Because while we do indeed have the potential for awesome goodness, our predisposition is to be naughty, naughty, naughty all the time.

The solution? Hah! You think that's the purpose of this website - to tell you answers? Oh, you silly, silly person. In the words of my friend Charles, "explore, not explain". Of course, I've got my own ideas, and if you really want to know, you can write me, I suppose. I may or may not tell you.

editor's note: it as come to my attention, via the propagator of the tyao website, that assuming does something beyond that mentioned in the aforead blurb - it also sends a mixed-up emu after your ass).