VENICE.- Patricia Low Venezia is now opening a solo show by British artist Philip Colbert as second exhibition at the brand new gallery on the Grand Canal in Venice, from May 20 to August 26, 2023 alongside the 18th Architecture Biennale. After the success of Colbert’s 12-meter inflatable – a surprise installation for the opening of the 2022 Venice Biennale – Patricia Low Venezia is excited to announce his return to the city.
Inspired by Canaletto’s renowned paintings, synonymous with Venice, Colbert uses the city itself as a context to present the work. In the exhibition titled, “House of the Lobster”, Colbert presents a new Pompeii series that celebrates the origins of lobster mythology reviving the lobster of Herculaneum and Pompeian mosaics and frescos. Central to the exhibition is the eternal conflict between the lobster, as a symbol of mortality, and octopus, a sacred symbol. In these underwater battle scenes, they are caught in the midst of a struggle, initially inspired by a mosaic From the House of the Geometric Mosaics in Pompeii (eruption in 79 AD), where a moray eel has joined in the aquatic fight.
Drawing on the rich mythology of ancient Greece and Rome, this new body of paintings also references many sea- gods such as Pontus, often depicted with crab-claw horns growing out of his head or Proteus, a shapeshifter commonly portrayed with tentacles. These mythic figures inform each epic battle, where the yin and yang of the lobster-octopus-duo dramatically plays out throughout the exhibition.
The Venice series taps into the artistic rite of passage the city has become for contemporary artists while simultaneously speaking to the major force Venetian painting was in Italian Renaissance painting and beyond. Along with the symbol of the lobster in Dutch still-life painting, the artist draws on its rich legacy in art history to create these battle scenes, where pop surrealism and classical antiquity collide.
Colbert also retraces the symbolic power of the lobster to ancient amphorae, most notably, The Class of the Seven Lobster-Claws. On display is a classical lobster amphora in a neo-pop aesthetic. With reference to the ancient vase makers, it suggests lobster-worship and its potential connection to a higher power, merging this art historical context with the surreal apocalyptic vision of his retro-future lobster world.
Established in Gstaad, Switzerland in 2005, Patricia Low Contemporary is the main destination for contemporary art in the famed Alpine resort. With 18 years of exhibition practice and more than 75 shows in Gstaad (with more in her Geneva and St. Moritz outposts), Patricia Low has been central to putting Gstaad on the contemporary art map. The focus is primarily on introducing the most prominent international artists to the Gstaad audience, with an emphasis on the legacies of Neue Wilde, Contemporary German Painting, Young British Art, Contemporary Photography, Post-Feminism, and Pop, as well as curating historic exhibitions featuring works from the secondary market. Patricia Low has built strong relationships with the international artists she represents or has invited to show in the Swiss Alps, among them established practitioners including Jonathan Meese, Katharina Sieverding, Herbert Brandl, Peter Halley and Gilbert & George, and rising artists such as Richard Kennedy, Anouk Lamm Anouk and Brian Rochefort. Artists including Thomas Zipp and Marilyn Minter have organised group exhibitions at the gallery, providing insight into their influences, thought processes and creative networks.
Patricia Low Contemporary has a strong commitment to facilitating the artistic process and actively encourages innovative practice. From 2007 to 2009 the gallery staged the Maison Jaune residency program, where artists were invited to make site-specific work. On April 1st, 2023, Patricia Low Venezia will open its doors on the Grand Canal with a solo exhibition by LA-based artist Amy Bessone.
Born in Scotland and living and working in London, Colbert is a contemporary artist working across painting, sculpture, clothing, furniture, and within digital spheres. Often referred to as the “godson of Andy Warhol,” he has created a global following for his cartoon lobster persona and his masterful hyper pop history paintings and sculptures. Graduating with an MA in Philosophy from University of St. Andrews, his work powerfully explores the patterns of contemporary digital culture and its relationship to art history, merging high art themes from old master paintings and art theory with everyday symbols of mass contemporary culture, all narrated through the eyes of his cartoon Lobster alter ego.
Colbert has exhibited in museums and galleries worldwide, including Karuizawa New Art Museum (Karuizawa, 2023), Museo di San Salvatore in Lauro (Rome, 2023), The Page Gallery (Seoul, 2022), Pearl Lam Galleries (Shanghai, 2022), Whitestone Gallery (Taipei, 2021), Times Art Museum (Chongqing, 2021), Sejong Museum of Art (Seoul, 2021), Modern Art Museum (Shanghai, 2020), Saatchi Gallery (London,2020), and Multimedia Art Museum (Moscow, 2020). Colbert has also collaborated with luxury brands such as ADV Label, Bentley Motors, Rolex, Montblanc, Christian Louboutin, COMME des GARÇONS, Chupa Chups, and Adidas.
“I became an artist when I became a Lobster” Philip Colbert
