Why is the Kangaroo made of Gold?
Gold is lush. Reflective. It symbolises wealth, power, status, money. It’s shiny. It is valued. It can be traded. It can ‘hold’ or ‘display’ another symbol of the above adjectives: diamonds.
What is the emotional response of the audience seeing so much gold? How have we been trained to ‘salivate’ over wealth like that? Perhaps they wont feel like that. I know from my own experience, seeing immense wealth at such a physical scale brings up all sorts of possibilities in my head (‘possibilities’ could also be translated to ‘greed’ if I really examine it) - what is it worth? What if it was mine?
Of course, this wealth is an illusion as it is a painting, it is not a real statue of a solid-gold kangaroo. The diamonds are not real, in fact I am making a point to make them very much ‘not real’ in the sense that diamonds must be cut in particular shapes with very precise measurements to create the dispersion (the separation of white light into colours) they are so well known for. My diamonds would not produce this dispersion. But it is a painting! It is meant to be pretend (or a representation)! But what if it was real??
Making something gold, large and grand is also my not-so-subtle way of elevating the power and the status of the subject.
The reflective nature of gold can be used to my advantage to further the story and the purpose of the painting. The audience stands in front of the painting to experience it. I (the artist) stand in front of it to paint it. Originally I thought I must always use the reflection of me in the studio working on the painting… but what happens if it’s not? What happens if the reflection in this kangaroo is me standing somewhere else, doing something else? What if it is not me at all, but other people or a significant place? How will this change the context of the rest of the painting?
The painting Las Meninas by Diego Velázquez is a big influence on my work:
Las Meninas by Diego Velázquez
It is a near life-size painting. This short video from sothebys.com is really insightful and articulates ideas I am playing with in regards to the reflection and how to lead the audience’s gaze around the painting.