Jacky Puzey

Jacky Puzey is one of our favourite textile artists at The Print Affair, and she launches a new collection Urban Leopards, Neon Cities at the Decorex show at Chelsea Harbour today as part of the ‘Design-Nation’ featured artists.

Urban Leopards, Neon Cities is inspired by Planet Earth II – Cities, where the co-existence & fusion between the living ‘city ghosts’ – the jungle leopards of Sanjay Gandhi National Park – and the Mumbai inhabitants who live within its boundaries, forms a constant tension between natural & manmade environments. It explores the balance of grass roots adaption and change to a world that is threatening a species’ survival but also, conversely, helping their existence with regards to hunting and opportunity.

Urban Leopards, Neon Cities is a continuation of Jacky’s interest into this frisson, with leopards appearing from behind dark silhouetted leaves in an urban garden setting as they move through the undergrowth at night – their ‘eye shine’ from the lamps above being the only ‘tell’ to the humans around them. These elusive and darkly elegant animals are captured in Jacky’s unique story-telling and rich illustrative embroidery with the bright neon colours of the dynamic tropical modern Mumbai, intertwining with its faded 1920’s Art Deco history.

Elements of decorative exotica overlay and intertwine throughout the work with embroidered and printed butterfly motifs sitting alongside a quote from Mahatma Gandhi in the region’s main language – Marathi – as a dramatic backdrop. Bringing an exotic, glamorous but dangerous animal and its habitat to life.