︎︎︎STATEMENT

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            Miha Majes' multi-media art practice explores various contemporary social phenomena through the appropriation of popular and recognisable images from everyday life, the virtual sphere, media and fiction. His visual language represents the millennial version of pop art in late capitalism; through the use of popular iconography, Majes also questions his personal myths, influenced by his upbringing in the Slovenian countryside. The conceptual starting point of the present series of ready-made objects and tactile paintingsmade of plasticine is a reflection on the state of contemporary society, the structure of moral systems within late capitalism and consumerism, and thus also the power relations between all the protagonists involved (intentionally or unintentionally) in these systems. The artist examines the visual information that is conveyed to us (sometimes unconsciously) in our everyday lives through various channels, e.g. brand advertising, products, as well as works of art, with the aim of (re)educating us to become well-behaved consumers, and in doing so also poses the question of how we react and respond, if at all, to a seemingly invincible and unrestrained economic system.


︎︎︎ABOUT THE ARTIST

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                        Miha Majes (b. 1993, Jesenice) is an emerging Slovenian visual artist. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Painting in 2019 and is currently pursuing his master's degree in Painting and Printmaking at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana. In 2020, he studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera in Milan. His work focuses mainly on the mediums of painting, printmaking and installation. He has participated in exhibitions and other artistic projects at home and abroad, and has also been part of international residencies in Frankfurt, Bologna, Iași, etc. Miha Majes lives and works in Slovenia.

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            Miha Majes v svoji večmedijski umetniški praksi raziskuje različne sodobne družbene pojave skozi apropriacijo priljubljenih in dobro prepoznavnih podob iz vsakdanjega življenja, virtualne sfere, medijev in fikcije. Njegov vizualni jezik predstavlja milenijsko verzijo pop arta v poznem kapitalizmu; z uporabo popularne ikonografije Majes pod vprašaj postavlja tudi svoje osebne mite, na katere je vplivalo njegovo odraščanje na slovenskem podeželju. Idejno izhodišče pričujoče serije ready-made objektov in taktilnih slik iz plastelina je refleksija stanja sodobne družbe, strukture moralnih sistemov znotraj poznega kapitalizma in konzumerizma, s tem pa tudi razmerij moči med vsemi v te sisteme (prostovoljno ali ne) vključenimi igralci. Umetnik prevprašuje vizualne informacije, ki so nam (tudi nevede) posredovane v našem vsakdanjem življenju preko različnih kanalov, npr. oglasi blagovnih znamk, produkti, pa tudi umetniška dela, z namenom (pre)vzgoje v dobre potrošnike, s tem pa se sprašuje tudi, kako oziroma če sploh,  se odzivati in odgovarjati na navidez nepremagljiv in nebrzdan ekonomski sistem. 

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            Miha Majes (1993) je slovenski vizualni umetnik mlajše generacije. Leta 2019 je diplomiral iz slikarstva na Akademiji za likovno umetnost in oblikovanje v Ljubljani, kjer trenutno nadaljuje magistrski vzporedni študij grafike in slikarstva. Del študija je izpopolnjeval na Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera v Milanu. Ustvarja na področjih grafike, slikarstva in prostorske instalacije. Sodeloval je na številnih razstavah in umetniških projektih doma in v tujini, udeležil se je več mednarodnih umetniških rezidenc v Frankfurtu, Bologni in Iasi. Miha Majes živi in ustvarja med Ljubljano in Radovljico. 

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Truck & Tracked Excavator 10931
Plasticine and resin on canvas
31 x 30 cm

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My First Mickey 10898
Plasticine and resin on canvas
18,5 x 24 cm

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Farm Animal Care 10949
Plasticine and resin on canvas
31,5 x 24,5 cm

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ACAB 10967
Plasticine and resin on canvas
24,5 x 18,5 cm

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The Peasant Wedding (After Bruegel)
Plasticine and resin on canvas
10 x 10 cm

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Happy Meal X Monster Jam
Objects, plaster and resin