Street signs, cigarettes, cowboys, muscle cars — Matt McCormick rummages through the symbols and nostalgia that makeup what he believes to be the faded memory of the American Dream. Based in Downtown Los Angeles, the artist unveiled a new solo show today at Omni Gallery in London.
Lead Me Not Into Temptation presents a series of paintings, sculptures, paper-based work and an installation that investigates his generation’s lack of social mobility and the crippling debt inherited from the mismanagement of global wealth. As evident in the text that is often scribbled and washed out in between layers of paint, each of McCormick’s compositions serve as a snapshot of the broken dreams of years past.
The cowboy has a storied place in the canon of American history. Often shown to symbolize adventure, self-reliance, and rugged individuality, McCormick subverts this myth in Somewhere Between Right And Wrong by showcasing two cowboys against a brooding pink landscape that offers no promise or fortune. Within the painting, like much of his work, the artist uses the cowboy as a proxy to reveal a defunct sense of achievement that resonated with the Post-War generation.
At the core of McCormick’s work is the recontextualization of the past to reassess the ideologies of Western culture. Lead Me Not Into Temptation is on view at Omni Gallery until July 3.
In related news, Gao Hang presents “Sofa Kit” at L21.
Omni Gallery
56-57 Eastcastle Street
London W1W 8EG
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