TO NOTE: Modern life is a delicate balance between the natural and the superficial. In one respect, we obsess over our “authentic selves”, galvanising approaches to live more sustainably and protect the Earth we walk on. In another, we are glued to our phones, engaging with a digital world where connectivity and perception battle it out on a 16x9 screen. To be “catfished” by our contemporary reality, is not uncommon, and it’s a conundrum explored by Sydney artist Benedict dos Remedios in the second iteration of his sense-igniting exhibition. “CATFISHED 2.0” featuring at @chalkhorsegallery until December 23, captures dos Remedios’ intrigue in the complexity of natural world’s relationship with rejuvenation and trickery. In a series of super-sized canvases, painted with the artist’s distinct vibrant palette and intricate brushwork, the portraits of pollinated flowers with a hyper-focused lens, points to the “catfishing” that occurs when flowers lure insects with the promising of sweet nectar, and slathers them with pollen to nourish other buds. An allegory for modern life, as we swan between the jobs we work to fund the lives we want? Dos Remedios tells us, “evolution is a perception, and that’s what I’ve tried to capture.” “I guess to a degree we’re all brands these days...a feeling of the current times, really, and within that we navigate this desire to connect to nature while keeping up with society’s obsession with upgrading constantly.” The balance between nature and technology prompted dos Remedios to release a “2.0” version of his original “CATFISHED” collection – using his “brand” to do “an update” to his work. “It’s about appropriating the language to feel current, and figuring out how all these elements connect... and I’m still figuring that out,” he shares. All he promises us though, with artworks painted across massive frames, is that “you’ll get a lot more out of it, in real life.” @dossssy @farmakiss @_miarankinstudio