Michael Amato is a fine art photographer, emerging artist, and a Hilla Rebay Post Baccalaureate Fellow at Trinity College in Hartford Connecticut. Much of his work carries a central theme of paranoia; regarding his concern with the advancement of technology and its impact on the human mind and society, issues of privacy loss in an age of virtual transparency, and the impact of a culture of fear in the western world. Other bodies of work focus on cultures and ways of living that fascinate him. At the University of Connecticut, he was the recipient of several grants and awards; most notably the SURF Award and the Supply Award which funded his creative projects Documenting the Burner Subculture and FLOWHANA: Photographs of the Hawaii Fire Artists. His work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, and featured in several photography journals and print publications. He currently works and lives in central Connecticut.
Fear Culture, USA
“All media exist to invest our lives with artificial perceptions and arbitrary values.”
– Marshall McLuhan
Fear Culture, USA is a photo essay that examines the prevalence of the 24-hour cable news cycle in the life of the average American. This series of photographs attempts to highlight how omnipresent the television and cable news are in the everyday public and private environments we inhabit. In these photographs imagery from newscasts of past, recent, and current events are contrasted by happy homes and relatable everyday settings. My purpose in developing this project was to draw attention to how a constant stream of breaking news and imminent threats might have a lasting effect on our collective conscious.
To view more of Michael Amato’s work please visit his website.