Monkey sees himself as a great, powerful, handsome King… a skilled fighter, possessing immense strength… and… having mastered the 72magical transformations… “equal to heaven”.
My interpretation sees him much more as a Peter-Pan-like-orphan. Born from stone, with no parents. Regardless of his talents, Monkey will never be accepted as an equal (in heaven.. or even in human society) … because he is just… a monkey.
This image was done for my friend Okkey who is a Japanese, Melbourne-based jazz pianist who is reinterpreting the story of Monkey’s Journey to the West with music and theatre.
I don’t know if you ever watched a show called Monkey Magic? I did. I grew up in Northern Ireland and used to watch it on after-school-TV. I loved it. I’ve watched it as an adult too… and it’s hilarious, irreverent and quite non-politically correct.
This image goes deeper into the original 500 year old story of Sun Wukong, the Monkey King and the “Journey to the West” I’ve really just skimmed the edges in my research, but this tale about the search for enlightenment seems to have so many layers about society, and outsiders, and acceptance.
