Pretty Wasted 

Dave Macdowell's “Pretty Wasted” is an oil painting that blends high and low references. Macdowell's choice of oil paint, a traditional fine art material, allows for a rich, glossy finish that enhances the overall visual impact, and is here used to render a figure embodying both glamour and debauchery. The choice of painting, a slow, deliberate process, contrasts with the subject matter: a woman indulging in instant gratification. The Colt 45 bottles, pipe, cigarettes, and tattoos all signify contemporary culture, set against an ornate backdrop that hints at historical decadence. The juxtaposition of the exquisitely rendered figure with the blunt, even vulgar, details invites us to consider the contradictions inherent in contemporary society. Macdowell seems to be challenging conventional notions of beauty, taste, and value, by questioning traditional distinctions between fine art and craft.