Thursday, September 11, 2025

Tough-Hewn Deities Rise from the Streets of Vietnam in Kumkum Fernando’s Rising World of Futuristic Figures — Colossal

[ad_1]



Artwork

#discovered objects
#Kumkum Fernando
#mythology
#sculpture
#Vietnam

Tough-Hewn Deities Rise from the Streets of Vietnam in Kumkum Fernando’s Rising World of Futuristic Figures — Colossal

“Koha, Manike the Maniac, and Lomba.”All photographs © Kumkum Fernando, shared with permission

Directly totemic and automaton-like, the deities inbuilt Studio REBORN in Saigon are sure by mystique. The characters are scions of the Vietnamese metropolis, rising from doorways, home windows, tabletops, and deserted structure that Kumkum Fernando collects, cleans, and repurposes as figurative sculptures. Whereas the discovered supplies could have misplaced their unique paint or patterns, the artist faithfully honors this historical past, usually recreating motifs and shade palettes mirrored on the ultimate varieties.

Born in Sri Lanka to an vintage collector, Fernando incorporates this background into his items, each via the act of scouring development websites, resale outlets, and streetside trash bins for wooden and different objects utilized in his follow and thru adornment. Lots of his sculptures embrace components of folkloric tales and temple work that infuse the items with a non secular, legendary high quality and reference Sri Lankan tradition.

Fernando’s newest physique of labor abandons the smooth, boldly vibrant types of latest years to as an alternative concentrate on a gritty, post-apocalyptic narrative. “I began out by making notebooks and toy vehicles utilizing previous Vietnamese constructing elements earlier than transitioning to shiny figurative items,” he tells Colossal of his evolution. “I started to overlook the textures and colours I used to work with. That’s after I determined to return and incorporate facets I beloved from the start into this sequence.”

On view now at Jonathan Levine Tasks, the characters of Publish Colonial Rainbow Punks “are intergalactic swashbucklers—half gangsters, half legendary beings.” Like his earlier works, they invoke East Asian historical past and mythology via the lens of structural particles like French shutters and window frames, though their geometric our bodies are embellished with mottled, worn paint and what seems like rusted metals. Hailing from a distant future whereas constructed with supplies of the previous, these figures recontextualize time and house and are mentioned to have reached Earth seeking Princess Izzah 281, their most tough mission but.

For extra of Fernando’s unbelievable sculptures, go to his website and Instagram.

 

A robot like figure with mottled paint and a squiggly mouth

“Koha”

An orange and blue orchid-like character with squiggly arms and legs

“Weeping Orchid”

A detail of a flower like form with squiggly vines coming off the sides

Element of “Weeping Orchid”

Three figurative sculptures made of geometric wood with rough-hewn paint

“Tender Boss”

A robot like character made of geometric blocks in yellow and orange

“Ilo Galaxy”

Five sleek robot like characters standing on a white table wiht geometric shapes

A robot with a spiky jackfruit like head and a body made of geometric blocks

“Jackfruit Jenny”

#discovered objects
#Kumkum Fernando
#mythology
#sculpture
#Vietnam

 

Do tales and artists like this matter to you? Turn out to be a Colossal Member immediately and assist impartial arts publishing for as little as $5 per 30 days. You may join with a group of like-minded readers who’re obsessed with modern artwork, learn articles and newsletters ad-free, maintain our interview sequence, get reductions and early entry to our limited-edition print releases, and far more. Be a part of now!



[ad_2]

Related Articles

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Latest Articles