Samuel Gomez (b. 1975-)
Oasis, 2015
Graphite, Acrylic and ink on paper
42 x 108 inches
‘Oasis’ is a surreal rendering of a utopian-smart city where civilians are drawn to visit, live, serve, entertain and work. Keeping the city alive and running, requires civilians to log in and plug into the ‘heart-like pump’ assembled at the city center.
Born in the Dominican Republic, New York artist Samuel Gomez's meteoric rise began with his inclusion in the 2013 ArtPrize Competition in Grand Rapids, MI, his first showing in any public forum. Samuel Gomez received a BFA in 2001 from Parsons School of Design in New York.
Gomez’s steampunk aesthetic is marked by an extensive usage of universal symbolism and contemporary themes of science, socioeconomics, sustainability, and, prominently, the future of automation and AI. His paintings are of dystopian themes.
The self-proclaimed storyteller's ominous scenes are so dense with imagery and symbolism, they beg the viewer to lose themselves in their interconnected, multi-dimensional depths. Gomez shows a society that has been led astray by corporations, capitalism and over consumption. “I question a world where all events and affairs seem systematic and guided,” says Gomez,