The Hong Kong branch of the Italian gallery Massimo De Carlo (MDC) is presenting the work of renowned American painter Rob Pruitt, unveiling new works from his trademark “Panda” series for the first time in Asia.This is the gallery’s third exhibition since its inauguration in Hong Kong during Art Week in March this year. Pruitt’s “Hong Kong Pandas” is on show through October 31.Pruitt has always had a love for the black and white fuzzy animal since his childhood, when he used to visit giant pandas at the National Zoo in the US. He started painting pandas 17 years ago in various mediums, primarily using glitter. These sparkly and kitschy panda paintings have thus become known as his signature works, alongside others such as “The Andy Monument” and “Suicide Paintings,” the latter of which was previously exhibited at MDC in London in 2013.The panda is globally perceived as a representation of the yin-yang symbol owing to the black patches on its white fur coat. Yet, for Pruitt, pandas are also a tragic symbol, close to extinction due to man’s invasion of their natural habitat. Despite the paintings' glossy and clichéd imagery, the glitter somehow counteracts their endangered status. Paradoxically, the artist aims to highlight how the panda’s presence in our consumer culture is proliferating as a stuffed toy and other products. “Ironically, the campaign to save the panda bear has spawned a new infatuation with the creature, resulting in a growing wave of panda products and a rapacious consumer demand for them. Pandas may be an endangered species, but in our contemporary global culture, they are flourishing,” said Pruitt in a statement. Pruitt’s pandas have had roaring success, notably being featured on shoes and handbags in a collaboration with fashion house Jimmy Choo in 2012. The pandas even made an appearance on the big screen in the motion picture “Kingsmen” inside the mansion of the villain, Mr Valentine (played by Samuel L. Jackson).“Hong Kong Panda” runs through October 31 at Massimo De Carlo, Hong Kong.
↧