This is not the final version. But it does show some of the effort I put into creating each of the twelve layers in this illustration. I have signed it “van den hooven”, because, frankly, it sounds better than “leslie dean brown”.
Seriously though, ever since I had this idea of the big M coming alive, I have not looked at the big golden arches the same way again.
So this artwork is merely an observation from travelling all around the world and having lived overseas. I have seen with my own eyes that some restaurants (such as McDonalds and KFC not to single anyone out), they do tend to take over the older towns a lot. And they are not always welcomed either.
The underlying message of this artwork is not that they particularly ‘destroy’ regions. It’s just that… they do kind of invade areas don’t they? It’s kind of like this all-pervasive business. You have to try fairly hard to go somewhere without seeing a McDonalds restaurant. The damage that you see caused here in the background is more… the fault of the West. So in that sense, the letter M represents Western intervention.
Now before I get sued, I should also probably mention that I ate in the McDonalds’ Engadine restaurant many, many times these past few months. Just to get more of a feel of the place. So, no I don’t hate McDonalds or anything. In fact I quite enjoy their food (sometimes). I do think they should add two new items to their menus though:
- a new McSoy burger
- a new McMushroom burger
Because like many people today, I am slowly becoming a vegetarian — and the salad option that they offer is horrible. And I can another scene where the big M has great big circular saw blades and it’s chasing after chickens and/or cows.