Hustle

Hustle is a disturbing photographic collection, with an overarching theme of cynicism and harsh reality. The frames are simple and direct, to produce immediate impact, and communicate a clear and sometimes disarming message.

The scenes in his artwork are real, in which the artist who created them lays himself bare in surreal settings.  Behind the subjects in the photos, the artist is lashing out against the contradictions, fakeness and narcissism of American society: us, ready to do anything in order to reach our objectives in an insatiable world that conditions us.  Sex is a sign of the times, a double-edged sword, a throwaway pleasure.

In each photograph, it is impossible not to feel the strong presence of urban life and the suffering and inner solitude that often accompanies it. Superficial perfection represented by the plastic like bodies and the use of luxury objects are contrasted with an internality that we want to distance ourselves from. We live in an era in which anguish is destructive, with a clear distinction between appearance and reality. It goes without saying that the consequence of this is an internal imbalance and the inability to have any sort of relationship that goes beyond superficiality.

This collection documents how we live in a chaotic world full of stimuli yet we are more alone than ever.  A feature of urban life. Thought-provoking images portray us as our own worst enemies, and reveal the false perfection that surrounds us. There are a multitude of explanations, including long working days, tiredness, pressure to excel and to prove oneself better than everyone else in a world that leaves no margin for error. Any means are justifiable to reach the goals we set ourselves. This triggers a downward spiral in which we become passive objects of a world in which sexual favours are used to achieve maximum results for minimum effort, the body is a traded commodity and beauty is the only measure of worth.

Influenced by his own personal experience, Emanuele Fiore poignantly questions and portrays modern day society, which has clearly defined values in relation to aesthetics, working life and relationships which transcend all age groups and socio-economic status.   In particular, four key themes emerge as the focal point of many of these images and debates: beauty, the body, fashion and money.

Physical beauty, once considered a gift from God or Mother Nature, today, is increasingly perceived as the product of a multitude of interventions (diets, cosmetic surgery, make-up, sports, tattoos, body piercings, etc.) that become an integral part of our existence and lifestyles.

Consequently, the body becomes the object and the subject of choices and options. It becomes a project in which we invest infinite resources, time and effort, so it can support and define our personal and social identity.

At the same time, fashion becomes a form of popular aesthetics, which is impossible to avoid.  Whilst in some cases, it can help us to express our individuality, in most cases it simply causes us to emulate the masses. Subsequently, all that we believe to be beautiful and which we desire above all else, is nothing more than an invisible puppet master dictating to us what is desirable, what we should like, who we are and what we should strive to be. What is born as a way of creating our own identity and expressing ourselves, becomes the perfect means that makes us invisible.

Money is presented in today’s society as our supreme and omnipotent ruler.  In a consumer driven world, everything has a price tag, you just need to give it a value, ourselves included.

This collection brings together a series of evidence of the modern era, and the significant transformations taking place around us, through small excerpts of everyday life. The artist provokes the observer, making it think, whilst documenting this moment in history and asking the question today: “What will we do about the future?”.