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Decadent Progression, Left
Published: 2008-01-28 11:50:54 +0000 UTC; Views: 29212; Favourites: 1039; Downloads: 593
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Description
This is the left panel of a diptych.Right panel here: godwinfj.deviantart.com/art/De…
In his endless pursuit of progress, man has built around him a Machine. It is a construction of utmost magnificence, but though man is its operator, subsistence, and champion, he relishes in the success of his own creation and becomes a slave to it, bound in perpetuity to its artificial nature of necessity. This is not some fantasy vision of a future world, it is right here and now, all around us – the Machine is an archetype of the world that chases after money mindlessly. Just what is this economic betterment we all strive for? Bigger homes, brighter children, healthier lives – everything in the definition of a modern society is tied down to the concept of money, so much so that it is ingrained within us all that such a “reality” is the true purpose of life. From the point we are "mouldable", lives are planned, expected and demanded as mere assets and investments towards the greater advancement of humanity. We become blindly driven by those around us and even ourselves to succeed within the framework of this Machine, expending all strength, emotion and commitment to ensure its eventual continuation.
Part of my GCE A Level coursework completed in October 2005
CGSSociety CG Choice Award, 2005
Right panel here: godwinfj.deviantart.com/art/De…
Related content
Comments: 111
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lovely work really, high quality in colors , nice perspective, very good sense in sturcture , and a very nice architectural concept as well . Do u have anything to do with postmodern architecture ? cause theres a lot of it in this concept .
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Beautiful job man. The description sets it off. Those drones working away on the bikes reminds me of the gym. Im not sure why they don't hook stationary bikes up to the grid like this; it'd save money.. and isn't that what were all after?!.. haha
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Hello there,
Your stunning piece of work, has been featured in my latest News Article : Stunning Digital Painting You may find this one, here : [link] So hopefully, you'll have a look at it and enjoy and maybe even a little 
Thanks for your support, again congratz !
Regards,
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Hi, many thanks, but the work is meant to be viewed as a diptych, do you mind adding the other piece as well? [link]
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I would love to but unfortunately, I cannot edit News Articles 
Pleasure !
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holy crap holy crap holy crap holy crap! WOW! this for coursework is amazing! @_@
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Your work is so beautiful 
This reminds me of that movie metropolis. Good movie...
Anyway, gorgeous piece! Two thumbs up!
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awesomatic.................... < is that even a word?
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DANG. That must've took ages. It payed off; this is awesome.
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I was also kinda figuring out the reason as to why you put them there before you answered. It looked like they were working so I had thought that i made a mistake on putting them as a rebel role, though they could still possibly be...
We can never really know who they are...
They could be one of the bikers who got fed up and decided to desert the mindless machine he created which could be my tale of rebellion against society maybe,
They could be the engineers who foresee the machines working, thus making them such like the present day government, parents, controllers of our lives, society, etc. This scenario is exactly what you have implied in your reply. They are in fact the maintanence crew and manufacturers of the machines yet they work under them or somebody for that matter, maybe money or something else.
They could be new bikers creating their own machines in place of empty seats (those that replace the machine created by the previous biker by force or mindless motivation) or empty platform (those that begin the mindless journey of machine life just like others)
Not only did you capture what is truly happening towards our own body, you made the surrounding fit in to how we create our environment. Modern yet solitude, Solid yet delicate, Reflectively Shiny yet disdainful, Golden yet dark. The contrast is what makes this picture so reflective of our hypocritical nature.
Towards your answer, no I did not intend for you to imply that we should remove money. Currency expands lifestyle, culture and entertainment. I just provided an argument to show why some of us nowadays are forced into building machines and also not all of us want to built one anyway.
Not all of us choose this path because our values are of money yet we still do it but we have the values lie you of living our life the better way, of enjoying a free will compared to a machine shell. This was why i felt so connected to the picture, because I felt I knew the artist so well because the same thought is in sync with mine yet I am still a slave of that same cynical machine i try to escape at every turn. Its not easy, and sometimes we have to create a machine in order to escape one later in life.
We may never know for sure why they are there, but the subconscious or artistic mind always have a special tale to tell in pictures such as this to give the mystique feeling of fulfilling the animosity of others towards the tale which can relate their lives to the picture.
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so much to look at! man id love to own a print... this is awsome very nice
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Brilliant, both artistic execution and social commentary. 
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You are as eloquent as you are talented.
this is amazing. <3
I really love the reflections and how the buildings just go on forever.
What a bleak existence.
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Thank you 
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Reminder to self: read 1984
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your artist comment reminds me of the story, The Giver. massive cities such as this one I believe would be awesome to live in, though the cost almost seemed to great.
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Hmmm do you really think it'd be awesome to live in?
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I'd love to live in a city as large as that. But that's me, many others may not.
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your picture is exelent and the descripcion of it is great. i just love it
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So true, your words and picture. Makes me wonder if the Amish are the only ones who got life right.
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Well, they probably took it to one possible extreme. I'm really just talking about how people value things in life. Money is important, but not so important that it becomes everything. Thanks for the comment
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Amazing and thought-provoking work! This is what this site is all about.
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I love the scheme of this, I also love that you have something to communicate through this piece.
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Thank you for having received the communication.
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Wow; as I was reading the artists comments, the only voice I could hear reading those words was that of the narrator from the old Twilight Zone shows. That's EXACTLY how I read this. Very good...
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Haha hmmm never really watched the Twilight Zone (didn't quite have those here), but I think I know what you mean, thanks.
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You're welcome ^^ They were old old episodes, black and white and it was a very good series. Many of the stories have some twist at the end that makes the rest of the story suddenly mean something so much more. They were all pretty much sci-fi too, on the Science fiction channel, no less. Many of the episodes are pretty well known; especially the one where the little bookish banker only wants to read his books but everyone always has more important things for him to do and then he hides down in the steel bank vault only to emerge after some quakes and find that the whole world's been wiped out due to some explosion; and then he realizes it could be a good thing.. he piles up tons of books to read, just by himself, all pleased with himself too, and finally is about to read, when he breaks his glasses. "That's not fair - there was time now... that's not fair." is usually the pretty well-known line that's used in other places (Like Family Guy) as jokes and funny parodies.
Quite good. Maybe you can find some of the episodes to watch somewhere like Youtube or something; they're well worth the watch.
Oh, and sorry for the awfully long comment... and for giving away the ending to that episode
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this is so true. The picture is wonderful, even if the message is not however
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This piece really strikes me to my core. Looking at the image at both a whole and in detail, it is truly haunting. I see a world where there is no colour, no warmth, no soul. When I look at the figures, I barely see a human. Instead, I see what was once humans, who are nothing more now than the city they have created; cold, dark, pale and lifeless, like the machinery itself. Even as the sun illuminates the sides of the buildings, I feel a greater sense of despair than of it's warmth. It really makes you think of what is to come for us humans.. will our greed and lust for power and wealth turn us into lifeless vessels? will our humanity be sacrificed in the name of progress? As the years pass by, I wonder these things, and your piece had the power to bring these thoughts out. It is truly an inspiring work of art, as well as of the soul.
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Thank you for sharing your thoughts
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