Throughout the ages artists have looked to their own mythical versions of history in order to create their work. By doing so, they can also show us clues about how our own culture shapes our perception of the world, and the myths that keep it afloat. Alternate History, is most commonly known in speculative fiction, which is a genre of fiction where one or more historical events occur differently. Imagine if the Allies hadn’t won WWII? Imagine if we never invented soap. Imagine if the the earth was destroyed by people and then a race of apes became super intelligent and then took the humans place. Wait…That’s Planet of the Apes!
Sci FI is a good starting point for a lot of speculative fiction. Margaret Atwood said that Speculative Fiction was “Sci Fi without the aliens” which I think is pretty apt. So, who are some other visual artists who have created works of art that also deal with alternate histories?
Trenton Doyle Hancock creates paintings that exist in the fantastical universe which he has created. His main character is called “Torpedo Boy” , and based upon himself. He also creates recurring creatures and personalities within his paintings. “Mounds” being one of them. In an interview with NPR Hancock stated that "Mounds are these half-human and half-plant creatures. They're kind of these dopey big mound heaps that can't really move or do anything."
Kerry James Marshall, who is considered one of the most influential living painters today created a comic book called Mastyr which featured black super heroes who previously were not often seen in comics. The self taught artist successfully bridged genres with this absolute classic.
"Black people occupy a space, even mundane spaces, in the most fascinating ways. Style is such an integral part of what black people do that just walking is not a simple thing. You've got to walk with style. You've got to talk with a certain rhythm; you've got to do things with some flair. And so in the paintings I try to enact that same tendency toward the theatrical that seems to be so integral a part of the black cultural body." Kerry James Marshall
Some of these genres may intersect with a genre called “Afro Futurism” which is a cultural aesthetic, philosophy of science and philosophy of history that explores the developing intersection of African diaspora culture with technology. Afrofuturism addresses themes and concerns of the African diaspora through technoculture and science fiction, encompassing a range of media and artists with a shared interest in envisioning black futures that stem from Afrodiasporic experiences.
Drexciya and Ramelzee both blended the boundaries of music, primarily hip hop, theater, world building and their own artistic visions.
Matthew Barney’s Creamaster cycle is one of the most well known alternate universe’s created by a contemporary artist. This is a series of five feature-length films, together with related sculptures, photographs, drawings, and artist's books, created by American visual artist and filmmaker. I remember seeing one of his sculptures in a show, it was like a lump of synthetic flesh. Without knowing the films, the other objects are difficult to interpret.
This sort of speculation isn’t anything new however, but goes back centuries. The earliest example of alternate (or counterfactual) history is found in Livy's Ab Urbe Condita Libri. Livy contemplated an alternative 4th century BC in which Alexander the Great had survived to attack Europe as he had planned; asking, "What would have been the results for Rome if she had been engaged in a war with Alexander?".
In addition to literally, sculpture, and painting serving as a platform for artists to examine alternate histories. Video Games have also become a popular place for “alternative futures” and pasts both to take place. Crimson Skies is one example of an alternate history spawning multiple interpretations in multiple genres. The stories and games in Crimson Skies take place in an alternate 1930s United States, where the nation crumbled into many hostile states following the effects of the Great Depression, the Great War, and Prohibition. With the road and railway system destroyed, commerce took to the skies, which led to the emergence of air pirate gangs who plunder the aerial commerce..
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. (Scavengers, Trespassers, Adventurers, Loners, Killers, Explorers and Robbers) is a series of first-person shooter survival horror video games developed by Ukrainian video game developer GSC Game World for Microsoft Windows. The games are set in the area surrounding the Chernobyl disaster site, colloquially known as the Zone, in an alternative reality where a second explosion occurs at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant twenty years after the first and causes strange changes in the area around it.
These are just a few examples of artists who have played with World Building and created their own mythologies and cosmologies. This can serve as a powerful vehicle for artists to commandeer as they search for their own voice and what they want to say. Instead of starting completely from scratch, just know that it’s ok to play with all of the mythologies and stories in our lives, and create whatever world it is that we want to create.
ASSIGNMENT:
Create a series of 6 paintings based on your own world building, and mythology.
For this project you’ll need to first find a pre existing mythology. Let’s say you want to play with Norse Mythology and alter it with a futuristic setting. In this case, the first thing you’re going to need to do is familiarize yourself with that mythology. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can just make it all up on your own. This is an assignment on BUILDING on a mythological framework , and speculating on a different trajectory of history. So, find out what mythology you want to build upon, and read a book on it. Not a website. A book. You know, that thing with pages, that takes more than 15 minutes on a wikipedia page? The word you’re going to look for is “cosmology” which refers to the universe in which a myth takes place.
After you have chosen your mythology. You’re going to start with character design. Create three different (or more) characters that exist within your universe. Make portraits of these people in an interior setting which tells us about the universe in which they inhabit.
In addition to the three portraits. Create 1 painting depicting a tool that exists in this universe. This is kind of like a still life, except with objects of your own creation. You can use photoshop (or Gimp, which is free to download) to mash up different gadgets to create your own. And then make a painting from it! Alternatively, you can also collage different images together (cut up old magazines, newspapers, etc.) . If you really want to go for it, make a trip to a second hand shop and look for children’s toys. Cut them up and reassemble, and then paint them.
The final two paintings you make will be multi figural compositions, with your gadgets, and the still lifes present. Boom, there you’ve got it! Your own universe which you have created!