Zosen

Zosen’s art is about interconnectivity. Firstly, in terms of painting - connectivity and fusion is key to his approach, in the way he uses bold flat colour, patterns and shapes that interlock like a mosaic, linking pictorial ideas in a freeform way. Rather like an improvisational jazz musician, Zosen plays visual notes that riff off each other to create exciting visual chord structures, colour harmonies and rhythms. Secondly, there is a central concern to connect his art to the people and social issues; whether it’s personal actions such as instigating social agitation, collaborating with other artists or through the messages contained in his artworks. Themes in his artworks appeal to the viewer to appreciate a holistic view of society; to question consumerism or consider the human food chain and how our cumulative actions link us to one another.

In a similar way his work is also about cultural lineage, how this universal view of society can be traced back to ancient cultures through indigenous stories and iconography. Through his travels across the world and in particular Latin America, Zosen has been drawn towards age-old symbols such as those used by pre-Columbian cultures of the Americas, influencing his own visual lexicon.

There is a vigour to Zosen’s practice that comes from painting incessantly outside – an energy that is hard to describe in words. His painting is a performance, a play with forms, naïve, expressive, creating unusual and powerful colour and shape combinations that capture a moment in time.

Tristan Manco