We Are All Ape: Lisa Roet’s Decades of Provocation
We Are All Ape: Lisa Roet’s Decades of Provocation and the REWILDING Exhibition
"Using the animal to reflect the human, demystifies the human," says acclaimed artist Lisa Roet. This quote gets to the heart of her compelling three-decade career, now beautifully chronicled in her powerful new monograph, I am Ape. For years, Roet has operated within a unique artistic terrain that blends still-life, caricature, classical sculpture, and Pop art, consistently returning to the great ape as her muse to explore the profound and often uncomfortable connections between the human and animal kingdoms.
As one of Australia's foremost sculptors, Roet is renowned for her arresting and often monumental works, including her famous giant inflatable apes that cling to iconic architecture in cities around the world, from London to Beijing. These dramatic installations are more than just spectacles; they are a provocative statement on the dire encroachment of humans on the great apes’ pristine habitats.
Her art suggests that with nowhere left to run, these animals will soon be on our doorstep, climbing our walls and nesting on our roofs. Roet’s conceptual project is aesthetically rich, diverse, and complex, delving into the degradation of the Earth, species extinction, and the hope for a future where we acknowledge how inextricably linked human and animal are in the age of the Anthropocene.
Roet’s artistic inquiry is one of deep scientific curiosity, rooted in extensive collaboration with zoologists, primatologists, and language experts. Her art is not about distance; it's about closing the gap. She is interested in exploring that liminal state between the rational and the primal, stating, "In my work I’m always becoming the ape, or the ape is becoming me.”
Purchase your copy of I am Ape.
Experience the Primal Connection: REWILDING Opens This Week
This is the perfect time to immerse yourself in Lisa Roet’s vision. We are thrilled to host her highly anticipated new exhibition, REWILDING, which opens right here at Pieces of Eight Gallery this Wednesday, October 21.
The REWILDING collection continues Roet's exploration of our shared identity, featuring works that are both beautiful and challenging, and inviting us to reconnect with our inner "monkey self". We invite you to join us this week to witness the mastery of an artist who has become a major voice in contemporary art, urging us all to contemplate our place within nature’s continuum. Don’t miss this opportunity to see how her enduring conceptual project comes to life through new sculptural and jewellery works.
