The work of Casper Braat presents the everyday as pure extravagance, a perspective that is driven by his profound fascination with consumer society.
No matter where one is in the world, consumption is deeply entrenched into daily life. Our society values convenience over all else, a drive underlined by a need for luxury, with a fetish for the new. Brands and corporations reign supreme and significantly shape the global capitalist culture. Objects became part of who we are and add status to someone’s existence.
Casper’s sculptures and installations glorify the everyday by lifting the ordinary onto a pedestal. Monumental in material, his work is made to last forever, memorialising the excess of the present for future generations.
Technically sharp, with keen attention to detail and wholeheartedly sleek, Casper’s sculptures, installations and films appear perfectly polished from the surface, but this sublimely static representation of reality is only a mirror held up to the observer. The problematic condition of our indulgent culture becomes clear underneath, and the viewer is asked to wait for their reflection to crack.
With the use of classical production methods, with an emphasis on the handmade, along with his use of materials such as marble and gold, he elevates the common to the iconic and makes the superficial substantive.
We should celebrate our commercialised world, imperfections and all, at least while we still can.
