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Shaun Tan - "Never Lose a Fight" - oil on canvas
Never Lose a Fight
Oil on canvas by Shaun Tan (2012).
Artwork size: 86 x 76 cm (33.9" x 29.9")
Frame size: 88.5 x 78.5 x 4.7 cm (34.8" x 30.9" x 1.9")
"The ‘crows and crown’ scene – ‘Never Lose a Fight’ – was a key starting point for the book as a whole: the idea of an older brother selling a younger one to some shadowy merchants in a moment of weakness, a story I’d been scribbling in sketchbooks for years. The crown itself does not figure strongly elsewhere; originally I had the older boy give it to the younger at the end, but then realised the crown is not relevant to their relationship. It’s more of a distraction, a symbol for selfish victory (winning an argument, for instance) since the idea of a king has little to do with partnership or shared privilege. There is also a sense that the boys have crossed into a ghost-city: a hollow, empty version of their more familiar environment. Maybe it’s the world of crows, a backstage mirror of the human plane, with dull buildings and silent chimneys. I’ve always drawn, painted and researched abandoned places, a favourite subject, and lots of crows."—Shaun Tan