Silent Ravage: by Aof Smith

SAC Gallery is excited to present the return of Aof Smith to our gallery this November in his solo exhibition, Silent Ravage. Aof Smith, a Bangkok based artist, has cultivated a following among collectors and lowbrow artists in Thailand. Greatly influenced by American Pop-Surrealism, Aof Smith maintains the dream-scape of the surrealists and the celebration of the shallow world often associated to pop art. Having developed his own style, Aof Smith personal sense of colours brings forward vivid and full-flavoured visuals that add dimensions and volume to the layers of characters in his works. In this exhibition, not only does Aof Smith spare no techniques, he also uses special colours to add further depths to his fantasy world.

Furry, a recurring figure in Aof Smith’s works, a cross between a bulldog and a rabbit, takes the main stage in this series and leads the force against humans. Fay, on the other hand, is a little girl who personifies the vulnerability in our society’s complex conscience and guilt.

Although deceptively cute and playful, this series of work raises the debate about animal cruelty especially to one’s own pets. In Thailand, for example, people breed betta, also known as fighting fish, or roosters to fight one another to entertain their thirst for blood sports. This imposed aggression is cruel and unnecessary. In some animals, such as dogs, they would be selectively bred with deformities and birth defects to achieve specific breeds such as French bulldogs. The result is a breed that, though entertaining and endearing to humans, suffer from respiratory difficulties and skin problems through their entire lives.

Many domesticated animals suffer abuse from their owners, and often time the cruelties are delivered with no consequence to the owners. In Silent Ravage, Aof Smith imagines the world where the animal kingdom join forces to retaliate against such humans. A series of 24 oil and acrylic paintings build up the tension between the two sides, as the army of furry animals march their ways to the confrontation.

The exhibition “Silent Ravage” will be held on the first floor of Art Centre Bldg., SAC Gallery from 6 November until 3 December 2017. The official opening ceremony will be held on 16 November 2017, 6:00PM onwards.