Benjamin Hammerschick is saving his soul, one brushstroke at a time. And then he prints his soul on t-shirts.
Although with Benjamin, it’s rather charcoal and fineliner strokes he uses to put his mind at ease. His designs are handmade and so detailed that even if you’ve stood there and looked at them for 20 minutes straight, you’re bound to find another subtle detail you’ve never noticed before. And most of the time, the closer look is also needed to understand the powerful statement Benjamin is actually getting at with his art. For example, the drawing fittingly called “Power” shows the top of the illuminati pyramid, but instead of the all-seeing eye, there’s a surveillance camera – this dualism makes for powerful imagery. And he’s printing all this powerful imagery on t-shirts.
Benjamin explains.
“Our so-called ‘advanced civilisation’ isn’t all that advanced after all, and the change in values is perfectly palpable in our society. I don’t want to sound too negative here, but the little misanthropist living inside of me is often calmed by me coming to terms with these issues through drawing.”
But just when you’re thinking this is all too deep and meaningful for a t-shirt, there’s more to his work than this pessimistic (meanwhile, accurate) reflection of our society.
Born and raised in Linz, Upper Austria, Benjamin soon developed a love for music, all thanks to his parents.
“Ma and pa played a lot of music when I was young, ranging from Krautrock to Neue Deutsche Welle to early experimental electronica such as “The Residents”. I saw Kraftwerk live in concert when I was 11 years old, and Depeche Mode’s “Violator” was the first CD I bought. I especially enjoy music that leaves a lot to one’s imagination.”
Spherical tunes, dystopian and visually stunning movies, and bizarre freaks of nature – these subjects are precious sources of inspiration for Hammerschick. He produces most of his pieces within 1–3 days, using mostly charcoal, fineliner and markers. He then prints the images on posters, t-shirts and cotton bags.
At least that’s normally the case. For the finite time between August 6 to 30, Benjamin and two of his childhood friends will additionally display their artwork as an exhibition at the new, independent art gallery, Improper Walls.
Dubbed “An Old Flame Never Dies,” the exhibition is meant to revive between the boys something that had become divided through life.
“We grew up together in Linz – Our love for obscure music genres, independent cinema. Burroughs and company marked our youth. Then, everyone started to pursue their individual paths, and several years have been dominated by silence between us, “ Hammerschick explains.
The two other artists are Roman Achitz, who in his work deconstructs copyright secured pictures, and Bernhard Weber whose works are characterised through a transition from object oriented to abstract. These two pictures by Roman (bottom) and Bernhard (top) are awaiting you in full-scale at the exhib. And many more of course: To get your hands on one of Hammerschick’s t-shirts, click here.
Get content that you love in your inbox!
