2021 Catalogue Archive

In his installations, video work, and paintings, LA-based Sayre Gomez incorporates elements of graphic design and popular culture into his trompe l’oeil paintings. His empty, photo-realistic landscapes (which he calls X-scapes) are reminiscent of earlier Californian artists like Ed Ruscha, and include hyper-realistic additions that highlight the sunny façade and artificiality of Los Angeles. Here, the artist turns a painting into a security box, with automotive paint standing in for the metal case that is covered with Gomez’s “scratched” graffiti. The central painted sticker points the viewer to a security company that appears faded and ineffectual. Gomez studied at the California Institute of the Arts and at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and his works are held in collection of the LACMA, Los Angeles, among others.