Thomas Goddard

Gallery 6 - Uprisings

Be More Brando

Known for being deeply idiosyncratic and ambivalent toward fame, American actor, Marlon Brando made a point of rejecting his celebrity status, instead exploiting it on behalf of causes he believed in. Breaking the stereotypes of his peers, Brando’s curiosity for life and the world around him became even greater than his legendary appetites for women and food. In Be More Brando, Goddard uses his archive of compiled Brando impersonations to uncover the truth behind a global phenomenon. Highlighting the actor as a symbol of mythology, Goddard explores Brando’s current status as a misinterpreted and misunderstood god.

Comprising a film, wall piece, sculpture and text, Be More Brando also includes a limited edition print. This new work is part of Goddard’s research into the nature of truth. Exploring the differences between inhabiting and being, his work aims to question the use of power within the act, be it one of gaining or in fact draining. In the case of Brando, is the desire to impersonate about indulging in or becoming another self?

Born in 1980, and based in Swansea, Thomas Goddard explores through his work the relationship between place, community and culture, looking at the connection between the individual and society, the role of misinformation through the media and its effects on contemporary culture. Goddard received a Creative Wales Award for 2015/16 and represented Wales as part of Standpoint Futures residency programme, London.