David is a highly established American photographer who has been exhibiting work since the 1980’s. He uses well known celebrities as subjects, and crowds the shot with surreal imagery, insane use of colour, overwhelming use of prop and composition and most importantly maintaining humour.
Marilyn Manson 
Elton John 
Elton John
He brings an unmistakable element of fun and play to what would otherwise be a serious celebrity shoot. I especially love his portraits of Elton John; How he brings in print from its original source with plastic cheetahs and stretches it back onto the piano, The strong vibrancy of the cherries topped with flying bananas say something of sex in the homosexual genre. The shot seems to be caught in a moment of free fall with the piano either sinking into the floor or beginning to take flight with Elton, riding it in a state of ecstasy, brilliant. The second portrait of Elton reminds me somewhat of Matin Parr’s beach series, placing Elton in typical working class holiday scene. The woman’s fluorescent pink skin behind him paired with the large inflatable dolphin speaks a lot of modern society and the gormless and intrusive dog steps towards the audience, not far from resembling Elton himself.
The Works above are pages from David’s most recent publishings “Lost and Found pt.1” and “Good News pt.2”. His style continues to overwhelm and intrigue with the loose use of historical styling and religious iconography; A nude man in a thorn crown raising a white flag, Jesus showing surrender? placed next to four digitally composed commercial jets, free falling in a plume of white smoke, beautiful and simultaneously tragic. a message of the destruction to the planet that comes from air-travel, or a comment/tribute to the many tragedies that have come from failed/crashing jets in an aesthetic that feels ethereal. A crowded neon bathroom stall with party-goers passed out on the floor, behind them the late Michael Jackson with wings standing on what seems to be a satanic figure with red skin and horns, the graffiti spelling “life, stay brave, forgive, soul”, an image of what appears to be a younger version of Michael perched in front wearing his crown of pop. A crowded luminous image of Nicki Minaj riding a motorcycle is an interesting use of composition with a large imposed male blue hand pointing directly at her breasts, which is then mirrored with a nude glamour girl with her breasts, eyes and lower area blacked out with a modesty banner. Questioning the use of the female form within media and the legislations along with it. The hand brings a sense of male speculation and control into the image. The most interesting of the four, A flooded art gallery, containing the works of the modern artists Jeff Koons and Damien Hirst, and strangely the “body worlds” exhibition in London. The walls of the exhibition have been broken and depleted, Hirst’s shark tank and basket ball have been smashed and drained perhaps this is the reason for the flooding? Is this a comment on the modern art world and the necessary destruction of it? or a dystopian comment of art stranded after a natural disaster? or the pointlessness of art in the worlds demise. Theres also something to be said in this image with the Louis Vuitton bags under the flooded water. I think this comments on the wasteful consumption and ultimately empty value of luxury items; Making a comment on the work of both famous artist’s, rendering their pieces as merely materiel objects for commercial consumption.
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