Bryan Eaton
ThoroughbredsNothing Lasts ForeverBlue Appalachia Call of the WildPeace GardenJunkiesOther
It is through the development of subcultures that we can investigate the challenge that exists for individuals to maintain a level of individuality while simultaneously belonging to a group. As an artist I look to investigate the experience of the individual and how, in turn, this experience is influenced and changed with the interaction of others. My artistic interest is found in subcultures that adhere to the German idea of Schadenfreude. In these social realms, where pleasure is derived from the demise of others and their misfortunes, I investigate how individuals find a common bond amongst this persuasive power.

The behaviors and actions in which we display are learned and adopted. This is precisely the basis for the way in which the social world functions. Through the implementation of painting, sculpture, and performance, I look to create work that facilitates the physical interaction between individuals and the art itself. My work lies within a framework that looks to change and provide a new context for subcultures as a result of their presentation. The method of taking the subject matter and recontextualizing it, acts as both a threat and validation of it belonging to what is considered to be admissible. By establishing a new place of representation for these actions, the point of division between the represented subcultures becomes indistinct.