Sebastian Chaumeton's nostalgic paintings merge art history with The Muppets to poke fun at modern culture

Blurring the boundaries of identity in a painterly fashion, his canvas paintings give order to the overload of information that permeates our screens daily. He attempts to make sense of the world we live in through an amalgamation of ideas ranging from meme culture, politics, art history, data misuse, social media and materialism.

His latest series, Fuzzy Futures, is to go on show at London's Maddox Gallery this month. Its title is a double entendre on the texture of Chaumeton’s work. From the inclusion of muppet and puppet characters to the fuzziness of a partially downloaded photo, the elements of his paintings are designed to slow down the viewing process.

The show will feature 15 paintings, seven sculptures and a video installation, engrained with Chaumeton’s interest in art history; with compositional elements hinting at other famous paintings from the likes of Matisse’s ‘Dance’ and Hokusai’s ‘The Great Wave off Kanagawa’.

"By playing with the context of existing artworks, Chaumeton’s visionary reimaginings recontextualise their original aesthetic by placing them in a white limbo space," says the gallery. "Reflecting the luminous digital screens that have infiltrated our everyday lives, nostalgic characters from Chaumeton’s childhood such as Kermit the Frog, the Cookie Monster and the Teletubbies all float around in a nondescript void. Charged with contemporary social commentary, the characters and composition take on a new, impactful meaning."

Fuzzy Futures will go on display at Maddox Gallery from 18 October until 5 November. A limited-edition print, part of an edition of 50 and signed by Chaumeton, will be available to purchase on the opening night.