Technocrat’s End

by Dan Cohen

Oil on Shaped Panel

14″ x 18″ x 1.5″

2025

I was originally inspired to create this piece by photos of ants and other arthropods infected by cordyceps fungi. The images were both strange and beautiful. Somehow the idea came to me of the cordyceps mushrooms emerging from a action figure’s armor, much like the chitinous exoskeleton of an ant. I ended up seeing it as a kind of memento mori, especially after watching The Last Of Us.

It has always fascinated me how the powerful will go to astonishing lengths to fend off the inevitable. The myth of progress promises transcendence, yet even the most advanced armor cannot shield against decay.

Here, the transhumanist dream curdles into organic inevitability. The technocrat’s pursuit of eternal youth and control ends as all life does—absorbed back into the cycle, repurposed as nourishment for the next generation of life that thrives on their remains.

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Dan Cohen

Dan Cohen is a classically trained painter, sculptor and muralist. His work has been shown at galleries and events around the world – and on many buildings and walls.
Dan’s influences include world mythologies, sci-fi, fantasy, philosophy and anything lying on the fringes of the known. His signature elements – beautifully rendered forms, archetypal symbolism, Alien Deco designs – bridge the past and future, magic and technology.

He currently lives in Portland, OR.

“The primary emotion I try to elicit in a viewer is Wonder. I want you to feel curious, inspired and courageous. I invite you on a journey to understand the complex human experience better, and investigate the myths and stories we tell each other that weave the secret fabric of our lives. These stories often describe fantastic places and experiences that influence our imagination, and end up shaping the ordinary world. Myths help tell us where we come from, who we are, and where we can go from here.
I view art as a form of magical technology that can transform the way we see and interact with the world. My work is inspired by the belief that art has the power to connect us to the mysteries of the universe and unlock hidden potentials within ourselves. I love to create images that appear to belong in our everyday world, yet have resonances with things we have only seen in our dreams. I describe my style as Magic Futurism: it has elements of Fantastic Realism and Sci-Fi, with a strong figurative and design focus.
Magical Futurism is also a philosophy and artistic movement that seeks to explore the way we experience “Reality” through a more holistic and expansive framework than what is currently provided by the mainstream view. The goal is to envision a future where we thrive in harmony with each other, our creations, and environment.
If there's a keyword that describes my art, it is "Weird". What that means in my world is the feeling one gets when the line between the mundane and supernatural blur. It's the feeling of encountering something both beautiful and strange. It is the allure of being pulled into a world that is at once uncanny and wondrous.”

If you are interested in my work, please visit my website for other paintings, commissions and prints!

Website: dc-creativelabs.com
Instagram: @dancohencreativelabs