Both an internationally exhibited artist and a toy-industry veteran, Brian McCarty is best known for his unique and innovative still-life photography. His work fuses reality and hyperreality through the personification and pantomime of toy characters, integrated into real settings through the use of forced perspective. Serving as both subject and surrogate, the arranged actions of toys are presented as authentic. Through the camera, McCarty creates and captures actual, although completely artificial moments in time. This artful play is used by McCarty to deconstruct and explore wide-ranging themes from family roles to consumerism, war to individual and cultural identity.
Read More About This Artist-
Zoom
Circus Liquor by Brian McCartyno ribbon -
Zoom
Free Range Furilla by Brian McCartyno ribbon
-
Zoom
Frogger by Brian McCartyno ribbon
-
Zoom
Gary Grenade by Brian McCartyno ribbon
-
Zoom
Pandacake by Brian McCartyno ribbon
-
Zoom
Primeval Love by Brian McCartyno ribbon
-
Zoom
The Meeting by Brian McCartyno ribbon
-
Zoom
They're Late by Brian McCartyno ribbon
-
Zoom
Vespa Va Vroom! by Brian McCartyno ribbon
Close
| Biography: | Both an internationally exhibited artist and a toy-industry veteran, Brian McCarty is best known for his unique and innovative still-life photography. His work fuses reality and hyperreality through the personification and pantomime of toy characters, integrated into real settings through the use of forced perspective. Serving as both subject and surrogate, the arranged actions of toys are presented as authentic. Through the camera, McCarty creates and captures actual, although completely artificial moments in time. This artful play is used by McCarty to deconstruct and explore wide-ranging themes from family roles to consumerism, war to individual and cultural identity. McCarty’s postmodern integration of concept and character earned his photography a prominent position in the growing Art-Toy movement. McCarty is featured in several books chronicling the artistic movement such as Vinyl Will Kill, Dot Dot Dash, and Toys: New Designs from the Art-Toy Revolution. McCartyʼs first monograph - Art-Toys - enjoyed several weeks on Amazon's art bestseller list when it was released in 2010. McCarty’s work has earned notable praise from such places as CNN.com, The New York Times, The Telegraph UK, L’Uomo Vogue, ABC World News, FHM Germany, and XLR8R Magazine. In addition to spending nearly four years in-house at Mattel, McCarty’s commercial portfolio includes commissioned work for MTV, Disney, Hasbro, Rockstar Games, Kidrobot, and Cartoon Network. McCarty co-created, produced, and art-directed an animated series based upon his photography that went into development for Nickelodeon. He currently serves of the board of directors for the PLATFORM International Animation Festival. Upon earning his BFA from Parsons School of Design in 1996, McCarty accepted a one-year grant to study at the Benetton-supported, creative research centre Fabrica in Treviso, Italy. There, he was invited to work on several prominent fine art and commercial projects, including KON©EPT, the first major photographic exhibition in Zagreb after the Croatian War of Independence. McCarty used the forum to explore so-called "war-toys" as both cultural artifacts and tools for gaining perspective on human conflict. This photographic study later developed into the conceptual basis for Brian's current body of work, titled WAR-TOYS. The project uses principles of play and art therapy to collaboratively articulate children's firsthand accounts of war. |
|---|---|
| Cultural Inspiration: |
Everything. Inspiration often comes from unlikely sources. |
| Artistic Inspiration: |
Robert Frank, Helen Levitt, Charles Harbutt, Bruce Davidson, Eugene Richards, Duane Michaels, and the entire community of fellow artists who have chosen to view plastic and plush as means of artistic expression. |
| Birth Place: | Memphis, TN |
| Current Residence: | West Hollywood, CA |
| Education: | Parsons School of Design |
| Press & Publications: | CNN.com, ABC World News, Hi Fructose, The New York Times, FHM Germany, The Telegraph UK, Clutter, L'Uomo Vogue, XLR8R |
| Permanent Collection: | Sir Elton John Photography Collection, The Collection of Achille Maramotti |
| Genre: | Low Brow and Photography |
| TTP Debut: | August 27, 2012 |
Upcoming Events
There are no upcoming events at this time.