For Men Only – Starring MM and BB 1961

Peter Phillips made this big, bold, mixed media painting called "For Men Only – Starring MM and BB" at some point in his career - it’s all about that mid-century vibe. The colors are super saturated, like a pop art dream, and the way he layers images and symbols feels almost like a collage but with paint. The surface has a smooth, almost machine-like quality in places, but then you see these little drips and imperfections that remind you it was made by hand. I’m drawn to the central black shape - is it a silhouette, a shadow? It’s got these stars popping out, and it connects the Marilyn Monroe and Brigitte Bardot images at the top to the rabbit figure down below. The rabbit is interesting, covered in coins or targets - is it about desire, value, or something else? Phillips is often associated with Pop art, but this piece has a kind of surreal, dreamlike quality that reminds me a little of James Rosenquist's billboard-like paintings, where fragments of images collide and create new meanings. It’s like he's inviting us to piece together our own story from these cultural fragments.