Moloch

Spanning two metres in height and width, Moloch is a mesmerizing example of Dominic McGill’s collages. Working according to a stream-of-consciousness logic, the artist combines found and drawn imagery with handwritten fragments on a near-architectural scale. Conceived as a form of contemporary history painting, McGill’s vast visual mind maps draw upon disparate religious, political and art-historical sources in a bid to reflect a world saturated with conflicting ideas, stories and information. The present work is a collaged transcription of Max Ernst’s 1937 The Angel of Hearth and Home, which sought to depict the chaos of Europe under the grip of Fascism. Composed of photographic snippets, McGill’s figure is a devilish apparition; indeed, the works title makes reference to the Canaanite god associated with child sacrifice. Across his dense, sprawling picture planes, the artist elides fact and fiction, re-telling age-old narratives and uncovering new layers of meaning. Based in Brighton, McGill featured in the Saatchi Gallery’s 2013 exhibition Paper, and was most recently included in the 2017 group show On the Move: A Century of Crossing Borders at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
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