“Based on the book “On Television” by the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, where it points out the dangers associated with the diffuser unit of information to the masses, the TV. I created a photographic series where television represent all the media, but also all the new technologies that gradually change our lives and seem to claim the control of them. The technology coupled with the information that serves as an instrument to the established power in their maneuvers to control the masses, standardization, social alienation and loss of individual identity.
At the visual level the project was inspired by the atmosphere of the literary work of George Orwell’s “1984.” The strange and surreal environment aims to increase the tension caused by the dialogue between the characters and the television. Different individuals wearing the same skin to represent a social role predetermined controlled by impulses from outside thereto, under the power of silent dictatorship, which is the ability to control information. The same dictatorship that whispers in our ear “obey” inducing us to act according to their interests.”
Photographer, plastic artist, designer and writer, Leandro Guardado is a multidisciplinary artist who has chosen image as the main way to express his unique artistic vision. As an image maker he creates surreal worlds from elements that are close to us, merging sometimes several arts in one work. While a conceptual photographer, his versatility has led him to create several works in the documentary photography and advertising field.
In addition to his studies on photography, Guardado is also graduated in anthropology, which has led him to add a social and human depth to the artistic dimension. In 2005 he published the book Poetic Anthology of My Imaginary Friends and in 2006 had its first exhibition in Lisbon, where he presented his works in the fields of photography, painting, installation and writing. At the moment, he is preparing several collective and individual exhibitions for some of his projects, including the two photographic series presented here. Obey series reflects human’s addiction to technology and the harms that follow it. The Epiphany series is a result of a reflection on the richness and musical diversity, as well as the relationship between music and image. This work, in particular, was chosen to represent ETIC in the Vila Franca de Xira’s Biennale of Photography.
Leandro Guardado is 36. He is Portuguese and currently lives in Lisbon.
Weekend portfolio selected by Diane Dufour
