Splinter Mine

‘Splinter Mine’ installation view, 2012

Alexander Ouchtomsky’s desktop image, from the latest sci-fi film Prometheus, is unsurprising given his self-professed respect for its childhood precursor – explorations in Lego. Today, his building blocks are still earthly, yet more advanced, and result in decidedly pretty but strange concoctions.

He plumbs the mind, mines his immediate environment, and glossy magazines, co-opting images for his collages. His cut and paste technique throws disparate objects together – gold fish/motor vehicle, jonquils/candelabrum. The dioramas, built up in layers of foam core create the kind of futuristic landscapes you might find in a wormhole, space-hopping through abstract timescales.

The chaotic process of splitting and splicing original material is reigned in by the artist as he progresses each work, with his large-scale kaleidoscopic prints, proof of a holistic aesthetic vision.

Chapter House Lane invitation

Alexander Ouchtomsky, 2012