Peggy sent us some pictures by hyperrealist sculptor Ron Mueck. The Australian began his career making models and puppets for television, then moved to London starting business in animatronics.
Eventually, he decided to sculpt the human body, and to make it completely detailed from all angles, except in size, which is generally larger than life...his "Boy 1999" is a squatting child, over 5 meters high (more than 15 feet). Others are quite small ("Two Women" is 33 1/2 inches high). He feels that life-sized figures aren't that interesting, that we meet life-sized people every day.
Most of his figures are nudes though some are clothed and others, notably his woman "In Bed", draped in keeping with the setting.
He works in fiberglass, but uses silicone to soften the face, and to allow implantation of real hair into the skin. It's all there, genitals, cellulite, nails, chest hair... warts and all.
Here's a conversation with Ron Mueck by Sarah Tanguy from Scupture magazine.
Browse a wonderful gallery of his sculptures through this link to washingtonpost.com
[I"Pregnant Woman" via BBC Collective]
I saw "Big Man" at the Hirshorn Museum in Washington DC. It was awe inspiring and perhaps a little unnerving.
Posted by: Stryder | September 21, 2007 at 04:01 PM