Henry Lee
60.9W x 76.2H cm
Charcoal on Canvas
“Evergreen” depicts a blooming bonsai that bears fruit to portals leading to different worlds. A traveler (the monkey) is seen taking a rest in the shade of the bonsai. When I think about the theme of celebrating hard work, I liken the process of establishing a company and building its brand to cultivating a bonsai. Both require patience, perseverance, and vision in realising a quality product.
A well-designed interior space transports the visitor to a different world/space; the portals depicted in “Evergreen” can be as windows/doorways to the various hospitality projects White Jacket/Wonder has undertaken in the past decade. The portals can incorporate key design elements from these projects in celebration of these successes. The resting monkey can be seen as a reflection of White Jacket taking stock of its achievements in the past decade; it can also be seen as a symbol of White Jacket’s mission to create quality spaces that are welcoming and sensuous to the visitor.
Finally, the title “Evergreen” and the use of the bonsai symbolises the celebration of White Jacket and Wonder as brands of lasting longevity and of the decades and milestones to come.
ABOUT
Drawing is the backbone of Henry’s practice and the use of charcoal features prominently in his work. Inspired by his love for fiction, narrative elements are often embedded within his images. His investigations into the interplay of text and image eventually led him to explore the pervasion of mass media in modern life.
Image and text fragments culled from myriad sources contaminate the visual plane; these collage-drawings underpin the anxiety and unease Henry grapples with when confronting the mass media. The process of drawing is a platform for him to reconcile with the difficulties of constructing a coherent self and social narrative in a society that is inundated with unceasing fragmentary and even contradictory information.
