(de)Conceptualise

(de)Conceptualise is an independent printmaking practice developed by Pedro Gil Farias. His practice focuses on linocut prints that foster critical reflection about the design world, society and technology.

Pedro engaged with linocut printing for the first time as an escape from the more theoretical and research based work he was doing while undergoing an Msc in Strategic Product Design. During his studies, Pedro’s view on design shifted from seeing it as a problem solving activity, to questioning the role of products, services and technology in our society. “(de)Conceptualise became a more artistic and creative expression of the work I was doing… It was a way of exploring and materialising thoughts, ideas and things that I was reading” describes the printmaker.

“The name for my practice came from the idea of deconstructing and dissecting the things we take for granted in our world and society. Most things around us are designed, they are intentional and they have certain biases and implications. Even immaterial things like the concepts of power or freedom. If they are designed and conceptualised by someone, how can we ‘deconceptualise’ them?”

Most of the inspiration and motivation behind (de)conceptualise comes from Pedro’s passion to challenge and question dominant narratives and concepts, both in technology and society. Inspiration for his graphics also comes from other anti-establishment subcultures like graffiti, street art and the punk aesthetic of the 70s.

These influences can be seen in one of Pedro’s latest prints; Internet. In the work, he looks back to postwar print ads that promoted an unsustainable lifestyle with slogans such as; “More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette” or “New! All-plastic disposable cup”. As Pedro explains; “When we look at those ads we stand in awe: how was this even a thing? The thing is, those ads were made in a certain context and time, and thankfully we now think of them as nonsensical“.

He attempts to re-create this ad style with a ‘product’ we know really well today; the Internet. When Tim Berners-Lee created the World Wide Web, he imagined it as something open, democratic, and free. But that is not what we know today. It is free but at what cost? Convenience? for the price of privacy? “Hopefully, in some years ahead, we will look back at the state of the internet now with the same shock and surprise as we now look at single use only plastic dinner sets” concludes the artist.

www.deconceptualise.com
@de.conceptualise

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