Kris Sunkee - La Pietà

Kris Sunkee

La Pietà

2025

Oil on aluminium

220 x 143cm

$22000

La Pieta is a bold, visceral portrait painted in oik on aluminium. It features Isis Avis Loren, a RuPaul's Drag Race Australia Winner, clutching her own lifeless body in, as she would say, "Boy Mode". Referencing Michelangelo’s sacred sculpture, it probes themes of sacrifice, grief, and rebirth. Is she finally embracing her true self or severing her past? This piece strips away nostalgia, confronting the raw reality of gender transformation and personal liberation. Merging religious iconography with queer rebellion, it asks: what are we willing to surrender in the pursuit of authenticity? A provocative reflection on identity, loss and self-creation.