With her work, Guardians, Kiki Smith places two tutelary deities to guard the Citylife area: the profile of two felines at rest is reproduced through bronze plates, placed in a vertical position.
The artist offers the representation of animals that populate another characteristic green area of the city: the gardens and moats of Castello Sforzesco. Kiki Smith, in fact, during a previous visit to Milan, was impressed by the feline colony at the Castle, which became an element of reflection: “Cats are mystical companions that give us joy and comfort.
These sacred animals, like many other living creatures, are today perceived as a burden in modern cities. Abandoned for social and economic reasons, they are left without treatment and exposed to disease. Often their reproductive organs are destroyed for our convenience. As well as the loss of variety in the plant world, the genetic diversity of animals is also thinning”.
The lost wax casting technique allowed the artist to reconstruct the fur and to give movement to the surface of the slabs that therefore have bas-relief elements such as animal hair and eyes.
photo: © Beppe Brancato | © Christian Richters | © Fabrizio Stipari