Exhibited: Exhibited: Interactions, Roche Bobois Manila’s Mah Jong exhibition, Whitespace, Chino Roces Ave. Extension, Makati. September 19, 2018.

ABOUT THE WORK

Visual artist Costantino “Cos” Zicarelli often produces monochromatic works with a dark, mysterious feel. A multifaceted celebrated artist, he works across exciting paintings, drawings, sculptures, and installations. Zicarelli is also one of the artists with a unique design prowess tapped for a collaboration by French furniture brand Roche Bobois to create their own iteration of its iconic Mah Jong sofa, designed by Hans Hopfer in 1971. In an interview, he explained that instead of opting for a white-and-clean sofa, his approach is the complete opposite: to “make it really dirty.” His idea is to “erase the white of the sofa with black.” The black-blocklike design suggests aging and gathering dust in its textures and smudges. In 2012, Zicarelli received the CCP’s Thirteen Artists Award. He has done exhibitions in Manila, Singapore, Malaysia, Norway, and New York, and was awarded with a residency at the Liverpool Hope University in 2018.