Turin is famous for many things, two which stick in the mind, though? Juventus, and being shrouded by the Alps. Neither exude colour and joy; history and beauty, sure, but in Juve’s famed black and white, and the Alps’s moody weather patterns, Torino is a city not renowned for oodles of pink.
Enter Buff Monster, and pink. Which, as the press release to his latest show, Can’t Stop the Melt expounds: is a symbol of confidence, individuality and happiness. We’ve encountered the Pop Culture obsessed, New York-based street artist before; most notably grilling him at Berlin’s Pictoplasma festival in 2014.
Back then he revealed his love of playing with the ‘idea of art and presentation’; invited to Italy by friend and fellow street artist Galo, BM is still fixated with the presentation of his work. ‘I did a lot of pre-planning (including making a 3D model of the space),’ the Californian artist begins, ‘I haven’t done a lot of painting inside a gallery in a while, but I wanted to for this show. I really wanted to create a unique environment for the pieces to live inside of.’
Famed for his liberal use of colour, the site-specific work that accompanies Buff Monster’s new works nods (intentionally or not) to the city’s famous football club — yet, even in muted tones, the positivity that permeates his work is anything but.
Buff Monster’s Can’t Stop the Melt continues at Galo Art Gallery, Torino, until 11 June.
