MARC
PRATS
ARTIST STATEMENT

My practice uses the narrative quality of painting to explore the liminal space between psychology and digital technology. It is through painting that I flesh out and subvert generational anxieties caused by or concerning the pervasive impact of gadgets and social media on the human psyche. In my view, painting’s physicality, slowness and history facilitate contemplation away from screens, away from the attention-grabbing algorithms that roam our digitized image-saturated culture to propagate content that fosters a superficial form of entertainment.
Perhaps counterintuitively, I combine digital aesthetics with gestural marks in search of a more enthralling journey than a kitten-filled Instagram reel. Namely, a series of intertwined painted stories that take my experience with technology as a starting point to discuss pivotal questions on life in the 21st century.
CV
Education
2019 - present
-MA Painting, Royal College of Art, London
2018 - 2019
-MA Arts and Culture, Leiden University, Leiden
2013 - 2016
-BA Liberal Arts and Sciences, University College Utrecht, Utrecht
Selected Exhibitions
2021
-'Through the Mirage', Fitzrovia Gallery, London
-‘A Space to Hold the Gaze’, Liliya Art Gallery, London
-‘Still Alive’, MAPA Fine Art, London
2020
-‘Jam Session Part II’, Christian Marx Gallery, Düsseldorf
-‘Slipping the Net’, Robert Young Antiques, London
2019
-‘Venus’, Fundació Amics de la UNESCO, Barcelona*
2018
-‘Distòpies Domèstiques’, Palau de la Diputació, Tarragona*
-‘Show 51: Our Souls to Keep’, Field Projects Gallery, the Internet
-‘Tracking the Curve’, NYSS Student Galleries, New York City
-Art Karlsruhe International Art Fair, Christian Marx Gallery, Karlsruhe
2017
-Art Karlsruhe International Art Fair, Christian Marx Gallery, Karlsruhe
Courses and Residencies
2020
-‘Drawing Marathon with Graham Nickson’, New York Studio School, New York City
Awards
2021
-Awarded the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant (First Grant, Painting), Canada
2019
-Short-listed for the Signature Art Prize, United Kingdom
-Long-listed for The Royal Award for Modern Painting, The Netherlands
Publications
2021
-Issue 60 Published by Art Reveal Magazine
-Article Published by Art Blog Mad 54
* Solo Exhibition