Viewing room

Earthlings

Joe Webb

Jealous North

26 Feb 2020 — 22 Mar 2020

The exhibition has now been extended due to popular demand (and corona)Following a successful debut at Jealous East, ‘Earthlings’ is ready to take over the walls of Jealous North. ‘Earthlings’ explores human experience and our situation and impact on Earth, as well as looking far beyond into the awe-inspiring cosmos.

On surface level, Webb’s dynamic and energetic artworks are visually intriguing due to Webb’s unique style. On a deeper level, these works challenge the viewer to consider physical issues such as our impact on the planet as well as social and gendered issues, usually with a humorous spin. Webb questions our perceptions of reality, contemplating our place, purpose and identity on Earth. Webb draws from vintage magazines sourced in second hand bookshops, juxtaposing two or three simple images, he invents new narratives which are simple but elegant. Webb selects images from gendered vintage magazines, displaying traditionally masculine and feminine traits, which are gender charged. He juxtaposes these loaded images, making us consider gender roles in today’s society.

I started making collages as a sort of luddite reaction to working on computers for years . I like the limitations of it...using found imagery and a pair of scissors, there's no googling for material and no Photoshop to resize, adjust or undo. There's an element of serendipity in finding images that work together that can't be replicated in the digital world. I wanted to get back to basics so set myself a simple rule of working from just two images, it's interesting to find what narratives appear when two conflicting ideas are juxtaposed. Some of the ideas reflect on the state of the world today, like a 1950's idea of the future that went wrong...while others are more optimistic and surreal.

Joe Webb, 2020

Webb works in the absence of computer manipulation, appreciating the limitations of collage by using found imagery and a pair of scissors, with no Photoshop options to resize, adjust colours or undo. The solo exhibition features new large scale oil paintings, which he has developed from ideas taken from the original collages, as well as rare and previously sold out screenprint editions and new original collages.