Patricia Piccinini

Sandman grew out of my long-standing interest in 'car culture', and particularly out of my interest in panel vans.

While 'custom vanning' was a worldwide phenomenon, this particular type of van existed nowhere else. The USA has the Bedford, Germany had the Kombi but only Australia had the Sandman and they represent the last, and indeed only, indigenous Australian car design. They are also a potent symbol, with many associations and reverberations. They were the adolescent surfer's vehicle of choice, nicknamed the 'shaggin' wagon' because their interiors were often the site of furtive sexual activity.

For people of my generation, they symbolised freedom but also, particularly for girls, a sort of dangerous excitement. The idea for my work Sandman was born from my desire to work with this symbol, but without reproducing the old clichés'.

Patricia Piccinini, excerpt from the artist statement published on the artist's website.

© Patricia Piccinini