Kōrero Toi: Isabella den Boogert

KŌRERO TOI | ISSUE NINE | WHAKAKATA / HUMOUR

Written by Isabella den Boogert (they/them) | @belladbb | Contributing Artist

Isabella den Boogert is a multidisciplinary artist who works between the mediums of sculpture and printmaking. They explore the internet-driven culture of performance, self-presentation, and identity in the digital age, using text and found objects as tools for exploring culture. 

Often delving into the rabbit holes and dark trends of the internet and pop culture, I use my art as a way to critique the negative impacts of the overconsumption of online media. My post-grad research focuses on the way gender and sexuality can be explored through sculptural practice, using humour as a way to examine hetero-patriarchal forms of control against the queer and female body. 

Having grown up chronically online, I would describe my practice as a type of cultural anthropology. My making process usually begins from a fascination with what other people are doing, things that make me laugh, or shock me with disbelief. Making light of current issues such as online dating and the loneliness epidemic, looksmaxxing, toxic masculinity, and celebrity beauty standards, I use humour to traverse the dark and often unbelievable aspects of human nature. 

Performance is an important aspect of my work as I examine the commodification of beauty and sexuality through historical and current gender expectations. My recent work has been exploring the culture of looksmaxxing, a subculture of the internet that encourages young men to “ascend” their lives through extreme physical transformation in order to maximise their societal value. 

In New Gods (Handmade Brick, laser engraving), I use the mugshot image of the most famous looksmaxxer, Clavicular, a 20-year-old who encourages young men to ascend by absurd and dangerous means such as hammering their face, undergoing cosmetic surgeries and taking illegal substances to stay lean. Using humour to position Clavicular as a tragic idol of the youth, I hope to create a reflection about the sad state of online male culture that enforces the idea that happiness comes from physical presentation and attractiveness to women.