Mahayana: The Great Vehicle
Michael Montemayor
ArtCenter College of Design
My work is a hauntological investigation of the emotional and subconscious interconnections between humans and machines. Drawing from coded imagery, personal ephemera, 80s–90s pop culture, underground motoring culture, meditation, and quantum theory, I explore identity and transcendence through the mindset of Mechanical Sympathy. Using assemblages of discarded automotive parts, a kinetic DIY go‑kart sculpture, and abstracted engine photography, I examine dualities of objecthood and monumentality, preservation and decay, consciousness and the subconscious. These materials become psycho‑alchemic vessels that mirror internal states through sound, touch, and motion, revealing the mechanical as a pathway into the spiritual.