Hollywood actor Johnny Depp is set to present his first sculpture, The Bunnyman, at the Contemporary Istanbul art fair in Turkey later this month.
The two-metre white bronze sculpture will be displayed outdoors at Tersane Istanbul, a historic Ottoman shipyard on the Golden Horn, as part of the fair’s special projects from September 22 to 27.
The work depicts a half-human, half-rabbit guardian carrying what is described as a “sword of truth”. Its origins date back to a drawing made by Depp’s son, Jack, when he was around five years old.
According to Depp, the drawing reminded him of a recurring dream he had as a child. The character later became a recurring image in his sketches, paintings and prints.
“When people see the painting I did – The Bunnyman – they always ask the same question: where did it come from?
“Some character that Jack had scribbled, beautiful scribbles into that shape, that image, reminded me of a kind of recurrent dream that I had as a child, probably around Jack’s age, five, six…”
The sculpture was developed through a collaboration involving the Sigg Art Foundation and Pantheon Art, which manages Depp’s art, and was cast at Fonderia Artistica Battaglia in Milan.
Its presentation in Istanbul will coincide with Depp’s exhibition, A Bunch Of Stuff, at the Modern Art Museum Shanghai, where more than 200 of his works are being displayed.
Depp has maintained a visual art practice alongside his film career, with his works spanning paintings, sketches and prints. A collection of his paintings released in 2022 reportedly sold out in less than 24 hours.
Ademide Adebayo
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