Hambleton’s profession was marked with distinct phases, and “The Final Shadows” captures the essence of every of them – how he progressed from a promising, charming, twenty-something pupil to a wheelchair-ridden, heroin-addicted 65-year-old, whose face had collapsed from a most cancers for which he’d refused to get remedy.
It’s co-curated by Edward Straka and Alasdair Pitt – an American and Briton, respectively, who hung out dwelling in Hong Kong, and had private ties with Hambleton throughout his closing years – and Hong Kong non-profit arts organisation HKwalls.
Hambleton made his title by a sequence of public artwork tasks that noticed him journey to main North American cities and paint pretend chalk outlines of homicide scenes at evening.
Mainland Chinese language artist Wang Tuo wins M+ museum’s US$64,000 Sigg Prize 2023
Mainland Chinese language artist Wang Tuo wins M+ museum’s US$64,000 Sigg Prize 2023
“He drew these outlines on the road and splashed purple paint from a ketchup bottle,” says Straka.
“Individuals didn’t know what to think about it however that’s a lot of what Richard did. He was at all times within the spirit of darkish humour. All the time attempting to elicit a response.”
In fact, the works weren’t the results of precise murders, however had been meant to mirror how crime-ridden the cities had been on the time.
![“The Last Shadow” starts with a display showing a photo of Richard Hambleton in his 20s. Photo: Courtesy of HKwalls](https://cdn.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/01/22/3d7e18a3-c76d-47e8-b5eb-f1515a4d91f4_b12d6d37.jpg)
Hambleton then grew to become energetic in avenue artwork in New York, the place he plastered huge images of himself on partitions, his menacing eyes staring instantly at passers-by.
“He began placing these round New York to get individuals questioning, ‘What is that this all about?’ However what occurred over time was rain and snow deteriorated the paper, leaving only a shadow,” says Straka.
The shadows grew to become generally known as the “shadowman”, Hambleton’s most recognised artwork sequence.
![“The Golden Boy”, by Ricard Hambleton. Photo: Courtesy of HKwalls](https://cdn.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/01/22/7e206583-91ff-452c-b517-e61801de112a_ff0bc7b1.jpg)
Hambleton then began creating works for galleries, but it surely didn’t final lengthy. “He simply didn’t need to be a part of that scene,” says Straka. “He was a lone wolf. He didn’t like coping with galleries and began getting tough with them. He slowly bought shunned.”
The final part of the exhibition, works he painted in the direction of the tip of his life, are a number of the strongest and thought-provoking, reflecting a person vastly altered from his youthful days.
In his closing days, Hambleton might barely transfer, however he continued to color. For his final work, a giant closing Shadowman titled The Last Work, he needed to be lifted as much as attain the highest of the canvas.
![“The Lady in Red” (2017), by Richard Hambleton. Photo: Courtesy of HKwalls](https://cdn.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/01/22/65895e28-4ea7-4c84-afa1-3b22be46e0d7_949b319b.jpg)
His self-portrait from this section is lacking a nostril – a sensible depiction, the most cancers having consumed it. Untitled (Exploding Shadowhead) (2017) has tiny splashes that appear to be exploding out of a face that appears deeply tormented. The harrowing marks seem to precise the ache and psychological chaos he was experiencing.
Straka and Pitt bear in mind the artist fondly and say he was completely happy to only have somebody to speak to.
“We actually favored him and I believe he actually favored us, as a result of he might sense that we cared,” says Straka.
![The exhibition at Soho House will continue until January 28. Photo: Courtesy of HKwalls](https://cdn.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2024/01/22/c0c9af26-d5dd-4a95-b32c-7cff1446ed51_57e0029c.jpg)
“Richard Hambleton: The Final Shadows”, Soho Home, 33 Des Voeux Street West, Sheung Wan, till January 28.