Lil-Hill’s Large, Ghostly Murals Comment On The Effects Of Capitalist Culture On The Individual Psyche

by Maria Sofou

Li-Hill is a Canadian visual artist currently based out of Brooklyn, who employs painting, illustration, stenciling, and sculptural elements within his works. His large-scale murals resemble ghostly depictions of angels, animals and humans in a way that they appear more like a work projected on the walls rather than paintings. His unique figures are not only impressive due to their complexity but also their amazing sense of energy that makes them seem like they are ready to move across the walls.

“Li-Hill’s work attempts to decipher the complexities of the rapid development in our modern age. Through the western gaze Li-Hill points to the devastating effects of capitalist culture on the individual psyche, his work serves as a template for the ramifications felt on a global scale. The work mirrors the perception of the westerner attempting to comprehend, disentangle and redress. Born out of suppression, it becomes a manifestation portraying the skewed image of the imprint our culture has globally. To create these complex images Li-Hill blurs the lines between the imposed disciplines of the art world such as graffiti, graphic design, painting and drawing to disrupt the concepts of what is considered high and low-brow art. Through the storm of imagery and density there is also a beauty that surfaces from this fragile balance. Inspired by the precariousness of the work on the street, ephemerality is injected into the core of the work, furthering its unsettling nature,” the artist explains in his statement.