Courthouses Past and Present

Artist: Zellen, Jody

Date: 2023

Medium: Acrylic lenticular

Artwork Dimensions: 46 x 46 in.

County Department: Public Defender

Artwork Site: Hall of Records - Office of the Public Defender

Supervisorial District: 1

Current Status: On view

About the Artwork: <em>Courthouses Past and Present</em> is a lenticular artwork by artist Jody Zellen that oscillates between images of past and present courthouses. The work consists of two large montages of courthouse exteriors, with photographs of historical buildings depicted in black and white and images of contemporary buildings in subtle jewel tones. To create this piece, Zellen researched historical archives and photographed the facades of several local courthouses, carefully pairing past and present elements to suggest movement through time.

About the Artist: Jody Zellen (born 1961, Boston, Massachusetts) is an American artist and educator. Her practice, consisting of digital art, painting, video art, and drawing, has been showcased by way of interactive installations, public art, and curated exhibitions. She is also known for her art criticism. Zellen uses media-generated representations as raw material for aesthetic and social investigations that combine text and image components. Her works range from mobile apps, net art, and digital animation to drawing, painting, photography, and artists' books. Her fourth curated exhibition "Poetic Codings" was the nation's first touring exhibition of artists' apps. She is based in Los Angeles.