Connor Gottfried
Connor Gottfried is a Canadian visual artist whose work explores our shared childhood with technology. Rendered in the mediums of acrylic, aluminum and electronics, his three- dimensional works open a plane where gadgetry and gallery collide, resulting in intricate and improvisational laser-cut collector’s items. Candy-like and oversized in their aspect, each illuminated canvas contains playable retro video games, reimagining the gaming console as an art object. Embracing a retro-technological aesthetic, and subsuming 20th-century pop iconography, his work invites interaction and a nostalgic return to time well wasted.
Gottfried’s asymmetric sculptures are not merely vehicles for extinct technologies, they conjure powerful memories of joy and comfort. Through the work we re-perceive these technologies as refreshing psychedelic centrepieces, casting visual art as the ultimate conversation starter.
By extending the language of art into new peripheral spaces, Gottfried toys with the status quo to break fresh ground. With a childhood irreverence for parental oversight, his work dissolves the museum velvet rope edict of look-but-don’t-touch.