About the artist

“Humans use “things” to support a lifestyle of comfort. In current mainstream culture we need, we buy, we consume, we throw away, we repeat-always in search of the next best thing to add ease and beauty to our lives. Artificial objects sow the seeds of vanity, for some, by creating an effortless way-of-life at a bargain. For others, they sustain a life of poverty and exploitation. Sweatshops and machines create a culture of mimesis, compromising quality for convenience and confusing the natural with the synthetic.

I re-use faux flowers and plants as material for installations in order to draw attention to the irony of their creation and use for decor. Viewers are first drawn to the bright colors and size of the arrangement; as they begin to look closer, they may notice the price tags and the purposeful lack of unity in the piece.”

Alexis Furlong is a visual artist based in Ogden, Utah.