There are many sensible people who honestly illustrate the main problems of the modern world, including one of the most uncompromising satirical artists Steve Cutts - an English artist-animator who works in London and draws in the genre of sharp social satire. His works, although somewhat grotesque and exaggeratedly dark, generally reflect the main tendencies of the consumer society.
We are really very dependent on all kinds of smartphones, and our children even go for a walk with their noses in them, somewhat reminiscent of those same zombies with dull eyes, experiencing an eternal hunger for often empty and meaningless information, in all kinds of "cool videos". And doesn't the dominance of fast food coupled with a sedentary lifestyle lead to obesity and the formation of such a "consumer".
Well, behind the wealth of a successful person there is the work of many different employees and ordinary workers, so the fundamentals of capitalism have not changed at all, perhaps they have just taken on a slightly more civilised form compared to the beginning of the 20th century, when even small children worked and the working day in the factory lasted up to 14 hours.
According to Steve, his style is influenced by old American cartoons from the 20-40s of the 20th century, graphic novels and vintage comics. Hence the bright 'childish' colours, which the artist takes to the point of absurdity when the colour scheme itself resembles downright kitsch. Combined with the sombre content of his illustrations, there is an even greater sense of the meaninglessness and merciless injustice of everything depicted. The colours emphasise the ideas that Cutts wants to convey to the viewer, portraying the modern Western world as a bright and absurd farce in which it is increasingly difficult to live for an educated and intelligent person who is unwilling to be a cog in the global consumer system.
Some of Steve's illustrations are downright provocative, but this is necessary to reach the average Westerner and get them thinking about the issues at hand. Only what stands out from the crowd will be noticed - Steve Cutts probably knows this rule first hand as he works as an online freelancer and freelance artist.
And it was a conscious choice, not because there was nowhere else to work. At first he worked as an illustrator at the British agency Glue Isobar, drawing ads for Coca-Cola, Google and Sony, but at some point he felt that he was becoming a "cog in the consumer system" and was tired of creating yet another ad just for the money. So he decided to take a step that surprised all of his friends and acquaintances: he quit his well-paid job and started freelancing online.
One of Steve's first sensational works was the cartoon "Man", which reflected the environmental problems of our time, the desire of "civilised society" to seize all resources without caring for the flora and fauna of our planet. Even the activities of environmental organisations, in Steve's opinion, are more focused on serving the interests of big business and show.
The musician Moby saw this video in 2016 and suggested that Steve make a video about the dominance of smartphones in the modern world. This is how the short film “Are You as Lost in This World as I Am?” was created in the spirit of old Disney cartoons about Popeye the Sailor Man, with music by Moby and the Void Pacific choir, which has gained millions of views on all social networks. It shows people obsessed with gadgets, whose lives take place in the virtual world, because the real one seems too boring and uninteresting to them.
They like something, they take selfies, but all this activity does not benefit anyone, it just takes time. Instead of helping others and showing basic compassion, the smartphone generation just shoots a 'memorable video' that gets a lot of views. And few would argue that the trend is getting worse.
And also, according to Steve, people have stopped caring about serious and important things, preferring simple entertainment mixed with advertising. "Cats rule the world", and looking at the amount of frivolous content available on the internet, all sorts of photos of funny and cute cats, it is hard to disagree.
And also, according to Steve, people have stopped caring about serious and important things, preferring simple entertainment mixed with advertising. "Cats rule the world", and looking at the amount of frivolous content available on the internet, all sorts of photos of funny and cute cats, it is hard to disagree.
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