Damien Cifelli

"The ‘Taro King’ is elected every year at the Gala and it’s always the same result. Few can remember it being anybody else, and most have forgotten why it's always him. But when the votes are counted he trudges up onto the stage, wearied by the weight of success, to don his taro root costume. Then come the photographs and the autographs, and being carried through the streets, though he rarely cracks a smile these days. Then he’s plied with drink all night until the next morning, when all that remains is a hangover and the knowledge that he is this years Taro King and will be again next year." Damien Cifelli about The Taro King, 2023