Patricia Piccinini: We Are Connected Exhibition In Singapore Showcases Strange Yet Beautiful & Hyperrealistic Sculptures
It's time to plan a museum outing, there's a new fascinating and wonderfully bizarre exhibition in town - Patricia Piccinini: We are Connected.
Held at ArtScience Museum, the exhibition showcases the works of Australian artist Patricia Piccinini, who is best known for her hyperrealistic sculptures of strange creatures that are a hybrid of human and animals like the armadillo, monkey, bat, pig and goat.
Piccinini's hybrid creatures are not meant to cause discomfort. Instead, they represent our shared existence with animals, plants and other organisms, and are also a reminder of how interdependent we are with nature. The exhibition is divided into six sections, showcasing sculptures as well as videos, collages and installations.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
As bizarre as they appear, there's something strangely beautiful, familiar and even endearing about her creatures. They seem to be straight out of a science lab, yet still have human-like elements that make them relatable and also remind us of our own animal-like nature.
Contrasting materials such as silicone, fibreglass, resin and even real human hair are used to create the illusion of skin and wrinkles with exquisite realness.
The sculptures often depict loving relationships, such as a mother nursing her children, lovers cuddling in a tent, or an elderly couple still retaining intimacy in old age. This triggers a sense of empathy and the ability to accept what seems alien or different.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
One section has a landscape of genetically modified, fleshy flowers that suggest fertility, birth and growth. Between these beautifully grotesque plants is a woman cradling a small creature, posing questions to visitors about difference, empathy and emotional connection across species.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Another lifelike scene features a child playing and exchanging smiles with a creature. This prompts us to think about how the unknown might seem threatening initially but turn out to be the opposite, teaching us the childlike way of embracing, and not fearing, difference.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Piccinini's also pay homage to nature's many different, and extraordinary forms of reproduction, caring and life-giving systems. At the Future Families gallery, visitors will meet strange care-giving creatures such as the motherly 'eagle-men' who have turned their bodies into nests to protect their fragile eggs.
This section also showcases a short film, We Travel Together, 2021, which follows a young woman as she encounters and connects with a peculiar little creature.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Towards the end of the exhibition is a vibrant installation filled with fungi-like bats. These bats are pollinators that link the life cycle of animals and plants and fungi.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Lastly is a garden of hybrid 'flowers' presented as an immersive exhibit that explores the hybridisation of flora and fauna.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Tickets are priced at $18 (Adult) and $14 (Child) for Singapore residents and $21 (Adult) and $16 (Child) for tourists.
Patricia Piccinini: We Are Connected at ArtScience Museum
Address: 6 Bayfront Ave, Singapore 018974
Exhibition period: 5 Aug 2022 to 29 Jan 2023
Opening hours: 10am – 7pm daily (Last entry at 6pm)
Buy tickets here
