Matthew Brannon

Matthew Brannon
Sculpture of a Travel Poster for Algiers, 2015

Paint on paper, 152.4 x 101.6 cm
Photography: Thomas Mueller

Courtesy of the artist and David Kordansky Gallery, Los Angeles, CA

American Matthew Brannon’s 'Sculpture of a Travel Poster for Algiers' is reminiscent of the beautiful and enticing vintage travel posters of the mid 20th century.  Similar to the work of French graphic artist Bernard Villemot, who produced travel posters for Air France from the late 1940s, Brannon uses simple elegant lines to depict the destination and paints with a limited palette of bold colours.
  In the foreground, Brannon romanticises the ancient heart of the Islamic city, portraying buildings with smooth solid walls and in their former brilliant white.  He captures the architecture of the Casbah in his pared down style: the horseshoe and lancet window arches, the traditional tiled walls, the steep and narrow labyrinthine streets that cluster around the citadel.  In the distance is the Bay of Algiers, the modern part of the city built on level ground by the sea.  The azure of the sea against the white of the sands and architecture successfully conveys the intense heat of the region.

Hedge, issue 38, December 2015, pp38-46