LONDON.- Mead Carney presents "I love MANGAHATTAN”, the first London solo show by Danish artist Artpusher.

Artpusher has always been fascinated by New York as a symbol of global commercial popular culture. Times Square in particular is unique in this context. It is the epicentre of the explosion of the image in the 20th century, a place where this tendency is manifestly expressed by the space itself. Here, the cityscape is completely overwhelmed by neon signs, billboards and enormous advertisements. The architecture, the people and the space are secondary to the visually strategic products that have been placed there by various media outlets and corporations.

Artpusher's works bring us face-to-face with our lustful consumption of advertisements and visual media. They depict what may be called 'The Stockholm Syndrome of visual advertising': commercial and strategic visual products have invaded our entire existence; they attempt to capture and monopolise our attention and attitudes as consumers. It is clear that Artpusher is interested in the symbolic space of Times Square, rather than the actual "real-life" location.

The paintings are detailed, almost photo-realistic works, executed in oil on canvas. They depict the seething crowds, the intense traffic and the intense light displays of the neon advertising screens and signs around NYC.

Artpusher's paintings are a reconfiguration of a pre-existing image; he depicts Times Square as a kind of microcosm; the paintings portray the state of the world as a whole. And the world according to Times Square appears to be embroiled in an all-encompassing process of visual prostitution.

Artpusher was born in Copenhagen, Denmark. Since 2003 he has been working as a professional artist from various studios in New York, Copenhagen and the Far East. He has hosted solo exhibitions in Europe, Far East and US. Some of his works have been acquired by major private and public collections and major international corporations - P. Diddy, Microsoft, IBM & Digital to name a few. In 2011, Artpusher was recognized by The Workers Museum and The Danish Design Museum, who included 11 artworks into their permanent collections.