Oh brother, he’s at it again. The prop impresario and sorcerer of the cinematic, David Brothers has dumped another load of art on the Salt Lake scene.
You may remember “Jimax,” from 2023. Set in a narrow alley in Salt Lake City’s Central 9th neighborhood, it was a surreal, carnivalesque installation that felt like a lost scene from a Fellini film. Sculpted heads leering from above, hand-painted banners lining the walls, and a glowing centerpiece—a shirtless beefcake figure flanked by chaotic machinery and lights—anchored the dreamlike passageway.
His new installation is in a locale a little less chic. Perched just outside the Salt Lake County landfill, this absurdist roadside spectacle transforms a wasteland of concrete rubble and discarded trash into a brightly colored theater of American consumerism. Rendered in hand-painted banners, the installation features grinning politicians, fast food logos, slot machines, and payday loan ads—absurdly cheerful symbols of late-capitalist culture set against a desolate, windswept backdrop. With its carnival palette and junkyard setting, the piece feels both biting and bizarre, like a forgotten parade float caught in the apocalypse.
Who knows how long it will last (apparently someone at the dump is not happy). Take 1300 south /California Ave straight west until it dead ends just past the county landfill. Then begin walking. We suggest thick soles shoes and good windshield insurance.
Peek around back and you’ll notice Brothers has repurposed his canvas banners from “Jimax” for this screed against disposable communities and predatory economies.
All images courtesy of the author.
The founder of Artists of Utah and editor of its online magazine, 15 Bytes, Shawn Rossiter has undergraduate degrees in English, French and Italian Literature and studied Comparative Literature in graduate school before pursuing a career in art.
Categories: In Plain Site | Visual Arts
