Michael Gao transforms furry culture with sincerity and horror

In a sudden twist of fate, furries are cool again. Or maybe that’s just the impression that airbrush painter Michael Gao gives off. Widely regarded as a bizarre kink, Michael has clearly taken it upon himself to open the controversial aesthetic beyond DeviantArt online kitsch to the public – with consideration for the importance of a “fursona”, a persona characterised by a highly customised anthropomorphic animal. Exploring the uncanny valley between human and animal, a type of hybrid being, Michael references the importance and violence of transformation, which has roots in ancient traditions such as donning animal furs. Here, desire is a physical force, explored through an aesthetic that is commonly considered as unserious and gaudy, yet these elevated paintings evoke pleasure and horror as well as being cute or grotesque.

“I start each painting with a drawing or an idea, then I work it out with oil pastel studies,” says Michael. “Finally I make a digital collage that informs my composition as well as textural references.” Seeking to recreate the claustrophobia of digital spaces and physical bodies, Michael’s excellent airbrush technique flattens planes (reminiscent of core influence Alex Colville) whilst rendering fur, eyes and light in photorealistic detail, furthering the viewer’s unexplainable discomforts surrounding furry culture. “I tried to unpack the idea of hybrids and intrusion, the distinctions between inside and outside,” says Michael. “Those are the things I think about when unravelling my own identity and I think there are some important questions to be asked (or answered) in the post-digital era.”