I am a Belgian artist born in 1992. I currently live and work in Brussels. I studied plastic, visual and spatial arts before devoting myself seriously to my creations.
Since 2005, I’ve been experimenting and developing my skills. It took me a while but in January of 2022 I finally decided to “go out there” and start showing my work to the public. Since then, it’s been incredible! Reviving vintage toys while giving them deeper meanings is now my endeavor. My work is teeming with details in a naive, organic and colorful style reminiscent of free figuration and characterized by the repetition and the entanglement of mass-produced collectible children’s toys often offered when purchasing something in order to attract the consumer. Apart from my desire to dive the spectator right back into childhood by reemerging all sorts of feelings, my work addresses different social and economic issues of our society.
The Kinder Collection A bit of History first For a long time, Italian chocolate makers produced huge quantities of chocolate eggs for Easter, but the rest of the year the machines remained idle. In 1974, Michele Ferrero, judging sales too seasonal, began to manufacture days after Easter, chocolate eggs whose consumption would no longer be limited to the Easter period alone and, like traditional eggs, would contain a mini surprise. Kinder Surprise was born in the spring of 1974 under the original Italian name of "Kinder Sorpresa". Since then, 30 billion eggs have been sold worldwide. At first, the gimmicky surprise was a simple assembly of small yellow plastic parts. But over time, the surprises have become more and more sophisticated, to the point that collectors have become interested in them, going so far as to resort to stock exchanges and auctions, creating a true “Kindermania”
Not just any figurines. I mainly used the collections from the eighties, nineties and early 2000s called "Monobloc" which are the most collectible ones. Back then Each Kinder Surprise was molded and painted by hand.
First Impression. The onlooker dives right back into childhood almost hypnotically. We all had a kinder egg in our hand, we all shook it wondering what we are going to get. Throughout this work, all sorts of emotions resurface with intensity, joy, nostalgia but never with indifference.
Upcycling By using vintage toys known to everybody and giving them a second life and meaning. It’s also an act of recognition by giving a voice to all the amazing minds who helped imagine them and more importantly all the invisible hands who helped shaping and painting them.
Pop Art My work is based on modern popular culture. The concept itself of the Kinder surprise point out the mass consumption aspect of our society. “Ferrero, is an Italian multinational manufacturer of branded chocolate and confectionery products, and the second biggest chocolate producer and confectionery company in the world.” When purchasing a Kinder surprise, it’s not the chocolate the consumer is buying but the surprise inside it.
Conceptual Art All figurines are glued to one another and interlock with each other. By doing so, it also reflects our society. We all are, in some ways, Kinder surprises. All tagged with a value. All hanging on each other struggling to affirm our singularity. Striving to be seen. Rare are those who rise above the others. All unique and all the same as the same time. What might look like simple children’s toys, is an echo to our entire society. Dario Pilato Contact: Mail: dariopilato@hotmail.com Web: www.dariopilato.com Instagram: /pilato.gallery Tik Tok: _mr_kinder_