Philip Colbert

Philip Colbert’s star has risen at an incredible rate. In a short period, he has created an international following and developed a powerful and prominent painting practice. 

Full observation of Colbert’s paintings cannot be done with a quick scan. Every nook of his paintings and every crevice of his sculptures is crammed with so much detail that the eye cannot help but linger, he states “My work is a reflection of the hyper-saturation of our culture – iconic images from art history alongside iconic brand images which reflect our crazy ferocious appetite for image consumption.” 

Frequently narrated by the distinctive personality of Colbert’s comical lobster alter ego, he states, “I became an artist when I became a lobster”. As a ‘Neo Pop Surrealist’ – a self-given title which encapsulates the hybrid nature of his work and his distinctive persona, Colbert appeals to the past to pave the way for the future.

Recent monumental oil paintings, such as the Hunt Triptych and Lion Hunt, maintain the artist’s wildly exuberant style, while alluding to the compositions of Colbert’s artistic predecessors. He challenges and toys with the viewer’s cultural vocabulary – superimposing commonplace banal objects onto painted faces and merging portraiture with popular culture in a Magritte-like fashion. 

Colbert’s ability to reference the epic narratives and heroic configurations of the Old Masters, from Reubens to Van Dyck, places himself in a unique and influential position from which he comments on the world around him. By presenting topical themes around digital media and contemporary consumer imagery, he connects to the influence of great art-world titans & re-translates their messages into new and exciting forms.

Aside from his artistic endeavours, Colbert embodies what a 21st-century Renaissance man could look like: he is a keen fashion designer – founding the label ‘The Rodnik Band’ – furniture-maker and car-body-shopper, shrink-wrapping a BMW 7-series with a fried egg design…