Philip Colbert (Perth, Scotland 1979 -)
Exhibited by
About
Pop artist Philip Colbert’s multi-disciplinary art projects have been acclaimed by an array of fashion icons, including Karl Lagerfeld and Lady Gaga, and have been featured in a number of museums, private collections and pop-up exhibitions worldwide, notably Art Basel, Frieze London, Art 16 and Tate London. Previously described by Andre Leon Talley as “the godson of Andy Warhol”, Colbert’s work provokes a unique, wholistic contemporary voice in modern pop.
Working across painting, embroidery, furniture, sculpture and wearable art, Colbert expanded his pop universe most recently with his inaugural solo show of large-scale paintings exhibited at the Saatchi Gallery. The monumental new works, conceived as a dialogue between the artist and his pop forefathers, trace Colbert’s autobiographical journey within his unique creative landscape. Like his Pop Art predecessors, he employs aspects of mass culture and removes them from their context to create a provocative, satirical language of his own.
Colbert brings pop back to British painting with a bang, transporting historical icons alongside today’s celebrities and motifs. The artist’s visual set of references include Salvador Dali’s lobster telephone, Lichtenstein’s hot dog, David Hockney’s swimming pool, Francis Bacon’s distorted portrait, Grayson Perry as his alter ego Claire, amongst others. The foundation of Pop Art is juxtaposed with Colbert’s own playful response to icons and symbols associated with fine art. In doing so, he creates a dialogue with established ideas and works of the past. He ironically pastiches this imagery, playing on the notion that their repetition and overuse over the years have rendered them symbols of popular culture.
Throughout his practice, Colbert plays to our fears as much as our hopes, by highlighting the influence of social media on our daily lives and addressing political concerns and global issues such as climate change.
Working across painting, embroidery, furniture, sculpture and wearable art, Colbert expanded his pop universe most recently with his inaugural solo show of large-scale paintings exhibited at the Saatchi Gallery. The monumental new works, conceived as a dialogue between the artist and his pop forefathers, trace Colbert’s autobiographical journey within his unique creative landscape. Like his Pop Art predecessors, he employs aspects of mass culture and removes them from their context to create a provocative, satirical language of his own.
Colbert brings pop back to British painting with a bang, transporting historical icons alongside today’s celebrities and motifs. The artist’s visual set of references include Salvador Dali’s lobster telephone, Lichtenstein’s hot dog, David Hockney’s swimming pool, Francis Bacon’s distorted portrait, Grayson Perry as his alter ego Claire, amongst others. The foundation of Pop Art is juxtaposed with Colbert’s own playful response to icons and symbols associated with fine art. In doing so, he creates a dialogue with established ideas and works of the past. He ironically pastiches this imagery, playing on the notion that their repetition and overuse over the years have rendered them symbols of popular culture.
Throughout his practice, Colbert plays to our fears as much as our hopes, by highlighting the influence of social media on our daily lives and addressing political concerns and global issues such as climate change.
Exhibition
Selected Exhibitions
2021 Lobsteropolis in Taipei, Whitestone Gallery, Taipei
2021 Lobsteropolis in Sejong City, Mark One Art Museum, Sejong City, South Korea
2021 Lobster Land in Chongqing, Chongqing Times Art Museum, Chongqing, China
2021 Lobsteropolis in Seoul, Sejong Museum of Art, Seoul, South Korea
2021 The Death of Marat & The Birth of the Lobster, Wardlaw Museum, St. Andrews, UK
2020 Lobster Land in Shanghai, Modern Art Museum, Shanghai, China
2020 Lobsteropolis, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
2020 Lobster Land in Taipei, Whitestone Gallery, Taipei
2020 Lobster Land in Gstaad, Patrica Low Contemporary, Gstaad, Switzerland
2020 Lobster Land in Sofia, Gallery Structura, Sofia, Bulgaria
2019 Lobster Land in Moscow, Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow, Russia
2019 Made in Illusion, Times Art Museum, Beijing, China
2019 Lobster Land in Seoul, Gallery Simon, Seoul, South Korea
2019 Lobster Land in Hong Kong, Whitestone Gallery, Hong Kong, China
2019 Hunt Paintings, Saatchi Gallery, Los Angeles, USA
2019 Hunt Paintings, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
2018 New Paintings 2018, Gallery Nichido, Tokyo, Japan
2018 Looking for U, Unit London, London, UK
2018 WaveLength, Powerlong Museum, Shanghai, China
2017 New Paintings, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
2016 Fried Egg World, Art16, London, UK
2016 Guess Who, Space Gallery, St.Barths.
2016 Guess Who?, Gazelli Art House, London, UK
2015 The World Goes Pop, Tate Modern, London, UK
2015 Art Miami, Miami Basel, USA
2015 POP Punk, The Design Exchange, Canada
2015 Inspired, Van Gogh Museum, Holland
2015 Het Noordbrabants Museum, Holland
2014 Sequin Pop, Gazelli Art House, London, UK
2021 Lobsteropolis in Taipei, Whitestone Gallery, Taipei
2021 Lobsteropolis in Sejong City, Mark One Art Museum, Sejong City, South Korea
2021 Lobster Land in Chongqing, Chongqing Times Art Museum, Chongqing, China
2021 Lobsteropolis in Seoul, Sejong Museum of Art, Seoul, South Korea
2021 The Death of Marat & The Birth of the Lobster, Wardlaw Museum, St. Andrews, UK
2020 Lobster Land in Shanghai, Modern Art Museum, Shanghai, China
2020 Lobsteropolis, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
2020 Lobster Land in Taipei, Whitestone Gallery, Taipei
2020 Lobster Land in Gstaad, Patrica Low Contemporary, Gstaad, Switzerland
2020 Lobster Land in Sofia, Gallery Structura, Sofia, Bulgaria
2019 Lobster Land in Moscow, Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow, Russia
2019 Made in Illusion, Times Art Museum, Beijing, China
2019 Lobster Land in Seoul, Gallery Simon, Seoul, South Korea
2019 Lobster Land in Hong Kong, Whitestone Gallery, Hong Kong, China
2019 Hunt Paintings, Saatchi Gallery, Los Angeles, USA
2019 Hunt Paintings, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
2018 New Paintings 2018, Gallery Nichido, Tokyo, Japan
2018 Looking for U, Unit London, London, UK
2018 WaveLength, Powerlong Museum, Shanghai, China
2017 New Paintings, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
2016 Fried Egg World, Art16, London, UK
2016 Guess Who, Space Gallery, St.Barths.
2016 Guess Who?, Gazelli Art House, London, UK
2015 The World Goes Pop, Tate Modern, London, UK
2015 Art Miami, Miami Basel, USA
2015 POP Punk, The Design Exchange, Canada
2015 Inspired, Van Gogh Museum, Holland
2015 Het Noordbrabants Museum, Holland
2014 Sequin Pop, Gazelli Art House, London, UK
Work Selection
Lobster Banana