Jonathan Ellery explores mass culture in a marvellously minimalist tome

What do Noam Chomsky, Walter Lippmann and Jonathan Ellery have in common? Perhaps, as Ellery’s minimalist exploration on printed paper proposes, it’s an interest in what makes us tick as human beings.
In Ellery’s latest book – a collection of pencils and charcoal drawings and relief sculptures fashioned with tape and stickers – Ellery draws on similar interests between the two major political thinkers of and his own artistic pursuit of the truth about our so-called democratic society.
Lippmann wrote that we must ‘live free of the trampling and the roar of a bewildered herd’, referring to the distorted information we receive and the human tendency to spectate, rather than participate in actions.
A spread from A Bewildered Herd
Ellery’s A Bewildered Herd (referring to both Lippman’s seminal Public Opinion from 1922, and Chomsky’s Media Control 80 years later) in this collection of works, is the British artist’s own take on this idea, using form to consider how easy it is to control and manipulate through mass culture and the semiotics of consumerism.
Of course, Ellery’s exploration of the idea and ideals of democracy is through abstraction. The first half of the book has a more urgent, primordial feel, partly down to the use of pencil and charcoal materials, while the sculptural works with different kinds of scotch and gaffe tape – sometimes with their symbolic words ‘FRAGILE’ still visible – tell their own distinct story. They allude more directly to the contemporary world, part found objects, part kitsch pop, rendered more so through the strong studio lighting used to shoot the works. The series is perhaps Ellery’s most abstract work to date.
As an artist, and as founder of British design studio Browns, Ellery has continually probed at the human psyche – while earlier works focused on the erotic, sexuality, and the human condition, this new book seems more preoccupied with our current political times. But as if to contradict the ‘herd mentality’, Ellery has hand crafted 300 individual covers, one unique for each edition of the book.
The first half of the book focuses on pencil and charcoal drawings
Ellery explores the idea and ideals of democracy through abstraction
The series is perhaps Ellery’s most abstract to date
The sculptural works are use different kinds of scotch and gaffe tape
The imagery later morphs into relief sculptures fashioned with tape and stickers
A Bewildered Herd is published by Browns Editions
INFORMATION
A Bewildered Herd, £45, published by Browns Editions
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Charlotte Jansen is a journalist and the author of two books on photography, Girl on Girl (2017) and Photography Now (2021). She is commissioning editor at Elephant magazine and has written on contemporary art and culture for The Guardian, the Financial Times, ELLE, the British Journal of Photography, Frieze and Artsy. Jansen is also presenter of Dior Talks podcast series, The Female Gaze.
-
Edinburgh design gallery Bard marks its first anniversary celebrating the soul of craft
Bard unveils ‘The Grit and the Glamour’, a showcase marking the Edinburgh design gallery's first anniversary (on view until 28 January 2024)
By Rosa Bertoli Published
-
Aurora 2.0 is the perfect woodland retreat to take in the Northern Lights
Aurora 2.0 by architect Snorre Stinessen in Norway is an architectural retreat with a spectacular view of nature and the Northern Lights
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Tia-Thuy Nguyen encases Chateau La Coste oak tree in tonne of stainless steel strips
Tia-Thuy Nguyen’s ‘Flower of Life’ lives in the grounds of sculpture park and organic winery Château La Coste in France
By Harriet Quick Published
-
Photo book explores the messy, magical mundanity of new motherhood
‘Sorry I Gave Birth I Disappeared But Now I’m Back’ by photographer Andi Galdi Vinko explores new motherhood in all its messy, beautiful reality
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Best contemporary art books: a guide for 2023
From maverick memoirs to topical tomes, turn over a new leaf with the Wallpaper* arts desk’s pick of new releases and all-time favourite art books
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith Published
-
The best photography books for your coffee table
Flick through, mull over and deep-dive into the best photography books on the market, from our shelves to you
By Sophie Gladstone Published
-
Supergraphics pioneer Barbara Stauffacher Solomon: ‘Sure, make things big – anything is possible'
94-year-old graphic designer Barbara Stauffacher Solomon talks radical typography, motherhood, and her cool welcome for St Moritz
By Jessica Klingelfuss Published
-
Behind the scenes of Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining: new book charts the making of a horror icon
Published in February 2023 by Taschen, a new collector's book will go behind the scenes of Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, charting the unseen making of a film that defined the horror genre
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith Published
-
Montreux Jazz Festival posters: a visual history
As artist Guillaume Grando (SupaKitch) unveils his poster for the 57th Montreux Jazz Festival (30 June - 15 July 2023), we reflect on the most memorable designs since 1967, including from David Bowie to Andy Warhol and Camille Walala
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith Last updated
-
Brad Walls’ aerial view transforms pools into artwork
Aerial photographer Brad Walls provides a crisp conclusion to the summer months with new book Pools From Above – you’ll want to dive right in
By Martha Elliott Last updated
-
K-style: understanding the rise of Korea’s creative golden age
Spanning music, fashion, design and food, a new book, Make Break Remix explores the global rise and rise of Korean culture
By SuhYoung Yun Last updated