jeremy hutchison reinterprets the marketing of luxurious brands & ancient myths

the Never Never by Jeremy Hutchison

The Never Never is a quirky body of work that investigates how fake news is broadcasted through media and manifests itself in society. Produced by the UK artist Jeremy Hutchison and Belgian curator Evelyn Simons, the project appears as a parody of advertisement and marketing strategies employed by influential companies. The Never Never sarcastically reinterprets a commercial shoot, merging luxurious brands, ancient myths, disinformation, and marketing lies. For this series, a timeless Porsche 911 was disassembled in eight pieces and worn by a group of Athenian performers.

Conceived as an itinerant show, the project comes with a sequence of short films that depict a bizarre journey that starts from the sea (see the videos above). The performers are clothed in red Porsche fragments, revealing only undressed parts of their legs, incarnating hybrid mythical creatures that emerge from a series of epic landscapes found in Greece. Documented by an advertising film crew, the journey ends at a photo studio, where the staff turns into actors and participates in the show. Financed by the Prada Foundation, the Never Never explores cliches, stereotypes, and global capitalism. According to the artist, ‘it examines how right-wing media used ownership of Porsches to make false and xenophobic allegations about the Greek debt crisis.’ The title refers to the seemingly never-ending number of payments on a loan.‘Did you know – there are more Porsches in Athens than anywhere else in Europe?’ excerpt from a phone conversation between the artist and his father | all images by Dani Pujalte unless stated otherwise

scathingly interpreting a brand campaign

The Never Never, produced in Athens by the British artist Jeremy Hutchison and Belgian curator Evelyn Simons, in collaboration with the Athenian performance troupe Nova Melancholia, sparks curiosity and gives viewers food for thought. Triggered by a piece of fake news, the project splits into chapters, ‘each [of which] responses bolstering the same ridiculous myth’.‘Through continual repetition, it parrots the rituals of corporate marketing and capitalist spectacle: a touring show that performs the logic of a brand campaign.’

As they mentioned in an Instagram post, comically referring to Zuckerberg (the posts start with ‘Dear Mr. Zuckerberg’) the production of the film was not easy. ‘Along its path, our swift-footed caravan encountered a series of obstacles: the boars of Mount Erymanthos, the golden-hooved goats of Cerynea, the man-eating birds of Eurystheus. Traces of these events are visible in the scratched surfaces of the Porsche.’

For the first stop on its journey, the project anchors in Hamburg, the advertising capital of Germany. The Kunstverein Harburger Bahnhof sees the conjunction of contemporary art, luxury retail, and museum. Displayed as archaeological artifacts, pieces of Porsche are shown in the venue, while a series of looped commercials are presented on screens. The show is accompanied by billboards with absurdist human/machine advertisements spread across Hamburg. For the second chapter, the work responds to Luxembourg, one of the smallest countries in Europe and the second richest in the world. Colossal billboards set on the gallery facade at Casino Luxembourg will create false expectations: ‘the exhibition will in fact be a scale model. But when documentation circulates online, the miniature works will appear vast. This chapter examines how online and offline realities diverge, how perception is warped in virtual space, and digital myths influence the structure and beliefs of contemporary society.’ During 2023, the show will travel to institutions across Europe, where will explore the production of contemporary myths, cultural stereotypes, and distorted realities.