'Kong' was commissioned by Pangolin London in 2008 for the gallery's exhibition 'Sterling Stuff II', which saw over 50 artists invited to submit a work cast in sterling silver. Heavily influenced by pop, films and consumerism, Scottish artist David Mach selected the iconic image of King Kong as the inspiration for his piece. Used throughout the 70s and 80s in various marketing campaigns to symbolise strength and power, it is hard to ignore the artist's irony and sense of humour in scaling down the mighty Kong to a hand held work cast in a precious metal.

David Mach RA is one of the UK’s most recognised and respected artists working in contemporary art today. Mach established his reputation in the 1980s with a series of increasingly ambitious sculptures and installations like 1983's Polaris, a life-size representation of the nuclear-powered submarine made from tyres, at London's Hayward Gallery.

Never content in making ‘easy’ art, Mach continuously challenges not only his physical ability but gravity and perception. He revels in the challenge of the physically demanding character of his works, citing that ‘hard graft never hurt anyone,’ and attributing his need to make physically demanding pieces as a response to growing up in the industrial region of Fife, Scotland. For Mach, the act of making is just as important as the finished article as he strives for a need to overcome the ‘Bohemian’ idea of the artist with their brush and chisel.

Born in Methil, Scotland in 1956, Mach graduated from the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, Dundee in 1979 before moving onto study at the Royal College of Art, London in 1982. He is a former Turner Prize nominee and was elected a Royal Academician in 1998. Pangolin London are proud to represent David Mach.