Italian multimedia artist Paola Pivi has made her West Australian debut with a blockbuster exhibition at The Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA). The exhibition, titled I don’t like it, I love it, features two new commissioned works and is considered one of Pivi’s largest and most ambitious shows to date.
The exhibition includes a family of technicolour polar bears, 999 trays of suspended colourful liquid, and a 14-metre inflatable comic cell. Pivi, known for her provocative yet playful approach, aims to create serious art that remains seriously fun. She encourages open interpretation, stating that artists should not dictate what viewers think.
One of the new works, Love addict, is an installation of 999 trays of coloured liquid hung individually in AGWA’s rooftop gallery space. The piece functions like a stained-glass window and encourages visitors to move delicately to avoid touching the artwork, highlighting awareness of one’s impact on the environment.
Another new piece, Fortunately, one picture is worth a thousand of these suckers…, is a 14-metre inflatable comic strip that fills AGWA’s central void. Created in collaboration with American illustrator Lincoln Peirce, the work draws from Pivi’s early inspiration from Italian comic legend Andrea Pazienza, which led her to leave chemical engineering for art school.
The exhibition also features Share, but it’s not fair, a ceiling installation of 700 handmade knotted pillows made from fabric used for Tibetan Buddhist monk robes. The work includes wall paintings with political undertones, reflecting Pivi’s view that all art is political.
