FRAGMENTS OF ROYALTY
2021
Artist statement
The world hovers on the verge of checkmate.
Kings are only Kings in title – fragments of Royalty, but unable to lead wisely; too narrow-minded to have vision; too insecure to take the difficult decisions; too self-absorbed to have real empathy and a total disconnection between empty promises and life bettering actions. The current Covid-19 reality has magnified the world’s leadership crises.
With this exhibition I am considering the world - in its largest or smallest formation’s dire need for wise and brave leadership to address the danger of Checkmate in a game where Kings and Queens, Bishops and Knights, Rooks and Pawns, all move for dominance.
The wise king
“O, how to be a good leader?”
contemplates the King.
“Stay humble, my King,
and wisdom may visit you”,
advises the pawn.
(577 x 684 x 80 mm)
The Queen
“A Queen can be a King, my Lady”,
proclaims the pawn.
“Do you really think so?”
asks the Queen.
“Perhaps even a better King”,
declares the pawn.
(619 x 635 x 80 mm)
The hungry King
“O, I am so hungry”,
whines the King.
“My all for his Majesty”,
mutters the leftover pawn.
(514 x 500 x 80 mm)
The angry Kings
“O, how long will it continue?”
they cry in unison.
“Until the last man is standing
and the King has received his medals”,
sighs the unknown pawn.
(642 x 509 x 80 mm)
The kind King
“O, what is to become of me?”
sobs the pawn.
“Take heart”,
comforts the kind King.
“A rose can take root and flower in a broken vessel”.
(551 x 428 x 80 mm)
The clowning King
“Wow, look at me now!”
tweets the King.
“Keep clowning my Lord and I shall wear the crown”,
comments the pawn.
(529 x 496 x 80 mm)
The Knight
“O, the scars of a life fully lived”,
sighs the Knight.
“Do remember the eternal promise of spring, my Knight”,
blossoms the pawn.
(512 x 438 x 80 mm)
Kings of power
“Mirror, mirror on the wall,
who’s the most powerful of them all?”
asks the pawn.
(528 x 524 x 80 mm)
The green King
“Keep a green tree in your heart, my Lord,
and a bird may sing you a song”,
whispers the pawn.
(592 x 480 x 80 mm)
The data King
“O, I feel so exposed”,
complains the pawn.
“It is for your own safety”,
smiles the King.
(514 x 472 x 80 mm)
Confessing Bishop
“O, how I have failed in my duty to take care of you”,
confesses the Bishop.
“Wake up my guardian”,
warns the little bishop.
“You have one last chance to set it right”.
(530 x 549 x 80 mm)
The unwelcome King
“Stop horsing around in my domain,
o King”,
proclaims the visitor.
(573 x 540 x 80 mm)
The puzzling King
“O, where to go... what to wear... what to do... what to tax...”
contemplates the King.
“Keep puzzling, my Lord, and I shall dance on your crumbling ruins”,
sneers the vulture.
(508 x 549 x 80 mm)
The blue King
“You are not welcome in my kingdom!”
commands the King.
“O, but what harm could I do...?”
protests the plastic pawn.
(578 x 509 x 80 mm)
The King of Industry
“Forward we go, bigger and better!”
announces the King.
”All for King and Country”,
gasps the suffocating pawn.
(529 x 578 x 80 mm)