I Was Young and I Needed the Money - Ozmo - 2018
🔹 Technique: Acrylic on PVC
🔹 Dimensions: 50 x 70 cm
🔹 Price: €4,200
🔹 Unique original work – Certificate of authenticity provided
In I Was Young and I Needed the Money , the artist revisits a classical scene with a contemporary, critical eye. At first glance, the work appears to capture a Renaissance scene, with a richly dressed old man and a younger woman reaching a delicate hand toward a precious-looking box. However, the addition of modern, iconoclastic motifs reveals another dimension to this composition.
The figure of the old man, with his gray beard and fixed gaze, seems captured in an expression of desire or lust. His finely detailed hands almost caress the object he is preciously holding. This scene is interrupted by contemporary graphic elements that divert and modernize the original imagery. One of these interventions is a pixelated figure that conceals a detail of the painting, a likely reference to digital censorship and objectification in modern media.
A wide, flowing blue loop crosses the canvas, like graffiti connecting or framing the two figures, an artistic intervention that distorts the visual dialogue between the classical figures. This bold curve draws attention and shatters the illusion of an untouched past, adding a touch of street art and a sense of rebellion to the work.
In the bottom corner, a small cartoon character carrying a green bag of money adorned with a dollar sign adds a humorous dimension, while also highlighting the theme of money and financial motivations that can underlie relationships otherwise perceived as romantic or pure. The work's title, I Was Young and I Needed the Money , suggests a wry commentary on choices motivated by economic need, perhaps even a nod to the exchange of favors or the compromises one is willing to make based on one's financial situation.
The artist uses these elements to juxtapose ideas of luxury and greed with contemporary notions of pop culture and capitalism, creating a work that questions not only the value and intention of relationships, but also how money and power continue to influence human dynamics over time.
This canvas then becomes a rich and multidimensional visual dialogue about money, desire and moral compromise.
