Thomas Marcusson: Statement

I like to take things that are familiar to us and display them in a context that provides a new or different meaning. For an example, everyone is familiar with the concept of worrying. But when displayed against the backdrop of a mass collection of worries, we might distinguish patterns and familiarities that make us think of worrying as not a flaw, but an inherently human quality. This is the idea behind my artwork “The Worryball”.

To achieve these kinds of shifts in perception I tend to use some kind of technology. This allows me to use data either generated directly by people or by larger man-made systems; such as a simple phone call in the gallery space or a collection of today’s headlines from hundreds of international newspapers. I can then decontextualise this data and create an experience based around certain themes. Recently, I’ve been exploring themes such as surveillance, globalisation and existentialism.

I also very much enjoy building and constructing my artworks, which might call for either learning the basics of a new programming language or solder a specific computer chip component.