Merit

MERIT (Diptych)
Medium: Oil on canvas + vintage collage on panel
Size: 24" × 30" (oil painting) + 11" × 14" (collage study)
Year: 2024
Series: "Find the Differences" (RAM Retrospective, 2026)
Status: Available
Investment: $8,500
 
The Work
 
ADRIFT is a diptych—two pieces meant to be displayed together.
The collage study (11x14") uses vintage magazine fragments: a 1960 Betty Crocker image, a Gaucho riding a bronco, layered and reassembled into a new emotional narrative.
 
The oil painting (24x30") is a freehand interpretation of that collage—painted without mechanical aid, scaled up 4× in size through observation and instinct alone.
 
But here's the hidden layer: The two pieces are a visual puzzle. Look closely and you'll find differences—words changed, details shifted, meanings altered. A fly sits atop the beautiful & repulsive. Look closer at the rider. Death holds tight to everything, even the wild bronco. The phase "Triumph Beats Merit," echos the underlying current of the painting.
 
As the series evolves, these hidden alterations become more complex, more layered, more meaningful.
 
 
The Framework
This series follows strict design principles rooted in marketing psychology and visual hierarchy:
 
The Law of Three: Each composition contains three main elements.
 
The Billboard-to-Library Strategy:
20-foot hook: Bold color, striking text, immediate visual impact
6-foot strike: Faces, figures, details come into focus
1-inch whisper: Hyper-fine brushwork, intimate detail that rewards close viewing
 
The result is work that functions at multiple scales—from across a gallery to inches from the canvas.
 
Additional layers:
Each piece references the Hero's Journey (found objects destined for landfills, rescued and reborn)
All source material physically collected during our cross-country journey
Bold compositions bisected or trisected for maximum visual tension
 
 
Acquisition
Investment: $8,500 (both pieces included—diptych must remain together)
Payment plans available: 3-6 months, zero interest
Example: $1,417/month × 6 months
Shipping: Professional art logistics, fully insured (additional cost)
Certificate of authenticity: Included for both pieces
Custom framing upon request: (additional cost)
 
This is conceptual work disguised as collage. It's nostalgic and futuristic. It's found objects reborn as fine art. It's the Hero's Journey applied to forgotten publishings destined for a landfill—now destined for museum walls.
 
If you collect work that has layers—visual, conceptual, emotional, synchronistic—this is it.
 
Inquiries: yes@justinkaneelder.com