Menu
The New Contemporary Art Magazine

John Byrd Recontextualizes Decorative Animal Sculptures

John Byrd works with taxidermy, hand-built ceramics, cast plastic, and other materials to create works that recall decorative souvenirs and knick-knacks. The artist says that “within a domestic space, I’m intrigued by the ability of an encapsulated aesthetic to establish, defy, and challenge characteristics of culture and class.”

John Byrd works with taxidermy, hand-built ceramics, cast plastic, and other materials to create works that recall decorative souvenirs and knick-knacks. The artist says that “within a domestic space, I’m intrigued by the ability of an encapsulated aesthetic to establish, defy, and challenge characteristics of culture and class.”

“While often a formal decision as much as a cultural reference, it does force me to acknowledge my conflicted consumptive role,” the artist says. “To some extent, I am interested in the ego attached to this process and sometimes find myself building the skillful ceramic “settings” in attempt to justify the death or at least return a level of honor lost in the animal’s passing. I make no attempt to be a moral compass on this subject. My work is simply a personal study of my own hypocrisy as a participant in the notion of both honor and consumption.”

See more of Byrd’s work below.

Meta
Share
Facebook
Reddit
Pinterest
Email
Related Articles
Across her work in sculpture, photography, installation, and performance, Julie Rrap interrogates common symbols of femininity. Her somewhat disquieting work points to the idea of gender as a performance — one that is sometimes painful and uncomfortable to execute. Well-heeled feet are at the focus of many of Rrap's works, such as her sculpture Stepping Out, which features a pair of severed women's feet that have grown fleshy heels like a sort of impractical evolutionary mechanism. The piece hints at the pressure women face to modify their bodies to fit impossible beauty standards.
Italian artist Matthias Verginer plays with scale and symbolism in what he calls his “ironic sculptures.” These wooden pieces, ranging in scale from small works that can be held to enormous figures. Often, these works feature a nude figure alongside wild animals.
Sunkoo Yuh’s clusters of ceramic figures traverse different cultures and topics. His vibrant arrangements of characters range from desk-sized pieces to towering creations. Packed in the pieces are ancient icons, occasional religious figures, and more, sometimes reacting to each other within one set.
Based in Lisbon, Portugal, Bordalo II creates resourceful assemblages out of the junk he collects in his city's streets. Using a bit of spray paint, the artist configures the found objects into playful animal portraits. His street art work hybridizes muralism and sculpture. A portrait of an owl conceals layers of scrap metal; a painting of an apple contains bent bicycle tires, cans, wood and cardboard. Bordalo II's art brings whimsical visions to Lisbon's streets and invites viewers to imagine creative ways to reuse their discarded items.

Subscribe to the Hi-Fructose Mailing List