Serendipitous Destiny

collages assembled from hand-cut pieces of pseudoscientific and pseudospiritual magazine ads with titles taken from adspeak
Artwork

Serendipitous Destiny

2012
hand-cut collages assembled on Arches Aquarelle archival watercolor paper, archival adhesive
16 H × 12 W in (40.64 H × 30.48 W cm) each
24 in series

Serendipitous Destiny examines pseudo-scientific and pseudo-spiritual tropes in health, beauty, fashion and lifestyle advertising. Didactic diagrams, scientific illustrations and allusions to nature come together with seductive smudges, ecstatic splashes and sugary drips. Titles for the series are taken from the adspeak in the magazine sources and include language that conflates science, magic, chance, and destiny with phrases like:

  • Pick Up Where Your Genes Leave Off
  • Innovative Exclusive Combination
  • Discovered Accidentally
  • Discover The Magic
  • Breakthrough Results Proved To Transform
  • Become Spellbound
  • A Precise Solution For Every Problem

Serendipitous Destiny examines pseudo-scientific and pseudo-spiritual tropes in health, beauty, fashion and lifestyle advertising. Didactic diagrams, scientific illustrations and allusions to nature come together with seductive smudges, ecstatic splashes and sugary drips. Titles for the series are taken from the adspeak in the magazine sources and include language that conflates science, magic, chance, and destiny with phrases like:

  • Pick Up Where Your Genes Leave Off
  • Innovative Exclusive Combination
  • Discovered Accidentally
  • Discover The Magic
  • Breakthrough Results Proved To Transform
  • Become Spellbound
  • A Precise Solution For Every Problem

…Taking a captivating approach, Splan puts the viewer on edge by questioning current media ideologies related to medical science…

Lenscratch
Linda Alterwitz
Vermont Studio Center
Jerome Foundation
Tofte Lake Center
Stanford University

Project support provided by Vermont Studio Center Artist Residency Grant, Tofte Lake Center Emerging Artists Program/Jerome Foundation Fellowship, Stanford University