Sonny Assu
Canada 1975, lives in Campbell River CanadaBreakfast Series, 2006
Digital print on photographic paper over foam core
At first glance, the Breakfast Series catches the eye with the familiar brightly colored appearance of the breakfast cereal boxes; yet, upon closer inspection, our youth's seemingly innocuous vivid graphics reveal a sobering and honest commentary that is much more troubling.
Strategically appropriating recognizable imagery, Assu presents a wry invitation to critical consciousness. While humorous in tone and delivery, the cereal boxes that comprise the Breakfast Series - complete with a pastiche of remodeled mascots, promotional tags, and nutritional facts-are loaded and engage with the very urgent social and political concerns of contemporary Indigenous communities, such as the environment, land claims, treaty rights, and food security.
Copyright © Tara Luty 2024