Sunshine Psychology playfully subverts marketing campaigns that have sought to link Brisbane’s psyche with the sun. Sebastian Moody has created this intentionally ambiguous phrase which slips between a slogan, an outlook, a state of mind, a solution, a brand, a joke or a poem. Its meaning, or lack of meaning, is up for interpretation.
The gentle, shifting gradient of the LED letters embodies the hypnotic effect of marketing psychology with its bright lights and alluring colours. The words play on the positivity often associated with sunshine and bright skies, while commenting on the monopoly that Brisbane tends to claim over the sun. Sebastian explains this phenomenon:
Every living person has looked at the same sun, it’s the source of all life, a metaphor for truth, God, vitality, health, goodness and purity. These are all universal principles hardly unique to Brisbane, yet somehow owned by this city.
City in the Sun artwork credits
Sunshine Psychology 2021
Programmed LEDs, acrylic lettering
Museum of Brisbane Collection
