Brodie Cullen Sydney window painting

This painting explores the concept of private monuments in the public space. Private monuments are typically a physical object erected to commemorate historical significance. Looking at the t-shirt through this lens, the popular piece of clothing becomes a mode of individual expression, because it often displays an image or message embodying something about the person wearing it. The neck hole in the t-shirt re-represents itself by creating a symbol of a window. The window provides a form of dialogue between the private and public, wearing the public and looking into the private, or vice versa. Ultimately, this work highlights the tension between individual expression and semiotics in both the t-shirt and private monuments.

Brodie Cullen, 2023