PREPARE FOR PICTOPIA

The explosion of character design at the beginning of the millennium haschanged visual culture distinctively. Graphically pared-down andbright-eyed pictograms spread like wildfire across digital media,advertising, fashion and art. By engaging the viewer on a direct emotionallevel they bypass language and cultural barriers - but do abstract designsreally have the potential to fulfil a utopian fantasy of global visualcommunication? Contemporary artists employ a common visual vocabulary ofarchetypal forms and pop-cultural icons, reconfiguring these intostartling, life-radiating combinations. Yet they remain trapped within thepicture plane, while our physical existence is bound to reality'simperfections.