Menu
The New Contemporary Art Magazine
South Korean artist Lee Bul creates sculptures and installations that move between dystopian techno-monsters and objects pulled from ruinous cityscapes. Emerging out of the late 1980s, Bul has examined urbanization, mythology, and societal “progress” in major exhibitions and shows. Earlier this year, she nabbed the annual, prestigious Ho-Am Prize.
Blending two- and three-dimensional forms, Mark Whalen creates cerebral and absurd arrangements of the human body. Whether stacking vibrant heads or using sculpted hands to sculpt the very shapes of canvases, there’s a metatextual component in tackling the act of creating art itself.
Ron Mueck The exhibition “Reshaped Reality: 50 Years of Hyperrealistic Sculpture” has currently taken over at the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taiwan, with the likes of Patricia Piccinini, Ron Mueck, and several others. The survey of hyperrealistic figurative work features both larger-than-life and distorted takes on the human form. The exhibition runs through Sept. 22 at the space.
Diana Al-Hadid’s ghostly sculptures, which take influence from historical architecture, mythology, and beyond, are currently inhabiting both a gallery at Frist Art Museum and outdoor gardens at Cheekwood in concurrent exhibitions in Nashville. “Subliminations” collects varying types of work from the artist, with both figurative sculpture and wall reliefs. Above and below interior photos are by John Schweikert.
Collage artist Sara Shakeel infuses our world with a surreal dose of glitter and diamonds. From bedazzling what some would call "imperfections" on the body to adding glitz to already-tempting fast-food item, the artist’s embellishments take on varying roles in her work. In a more direct statement: The Pakistani artist says that “each picture heals a part of me and i hope it heals a part of you too.”
In his first exhibition in Hungary, Dmitry Kawarga's "post-human" sculptures and installations reflect on humanity's vulnerability. His "Anthropocentrism Toxicosis” series, in particular, is on display at the Ferenczy Museum, with works built with polymers and occasionally, usage of 3D-printing processes. The exhibition runs through Sept. 15.
In her ceramic sculptures, Janet Beckhouse taps into ancient contemplations on life, death, and nature. Though at times disconcerting, with writhing floral elements enveloping her figures, each work is executed with elegance. Beckhouse crafts these sculptures in both towering and handheld scales.
Zachary Eastwood-Bloom takes the idea of adding digital-like glitches to traditional sculptures to a visceral level. He created most of these sculptures while he was sculptor-in-residence at Pangolin London. He uses both digital and analogue means to craft the final product, unifying several disciplines for a startling end result.
Bruno Weber was a master of crafting fantastical creatures, and there’s no greater example than the 220,000-square-foot sculpture garden bearing his name in his native Switzerland, visited by thousands each year. Inside this magical park, nestled in Spreitenbach and Dietikon, visitors can scale and interact with its inhabitants. Here, artist Angie Mason shares photos from her recent visit there.
Tracey Snelling's installations are immersive blends of sculpture, video, and photography, her makeshift buildings containing surprises in their windows and corners. Her recent, massive construction at the 58th Venice Biennale reflects on her experiences living in China, in particular. Videos shown within offer peeks into her experiences with friends; structures are inspired by actual places she visited.
Delphine Bonnet’s ceramic figures reveal inner worlds, with components that only at first appear as organs. Elsewhere, the artist creates stoneware creatures that appear at once apart of our own natural world and from another dimension entirely. The form offers an ancient quality to her works, further rooting them in the mythologies that inspire her.
Using the unexpected material of spaghetti, designer-artist Alice Pegna creates elegance and striking pieces adorning mannequins. Her series, "Ex Nihilo," features ongoing experimentation that encompasses headdresses, dresses, and objects. The strands’ rigid, uncooked form allows the artist to craft geometric designs, culminating in the bold final result seen below.
Taking influence from Byzantine art and other eras of religious art, Aleksandar Todorovic renders contemporary tech figures as religious icons and social media symbols as sacred, in egg tempera and acrylic. Elsewhere, his painted and sculpture works look at consumerism and contemporary global politics. He recently displayed this works under the title “Religion Remastered.”
Multidisciplinary artist Melissa Meier combines sculpture, photography, and other forms with surreal—and at times, visceral—results. Whether it's the wearable, egg-filled sculptures in her "Skin" series or the unsettling masks in "Glass-Eyes," Meier is able to create otherworldly looks tethered to the natural world.
Casey Curran's kinetic sculptures consist of wire, aluminum, motors, sculpted brass, cranks, or other materials, yet resemble organic objects in essence. The artist, hailing from Washington, crafts his intricate works with the cycles and shapes of nature in mind, yet each sculpture doesn’t seem to draw from any one creature or floral element.
Sandra de Groot crafts soft armor and ornate headpieces in her macramé “kNOTs” series. When the works adorn models, they are activated in a way that appears both regal and fantastical. Each piece feels independent of any one place or time.
In Kate MacDowell's recent work, subtle aspects of the animals she sculpts subvert expectations. Some of MacDowell’s new pieces are part of the new group show “Subversive Suburbia" at Mindy Solomon Gallery, kicking off on Friday. Her porcelain creatures and plantlife have long looked at both vulnerability and power of the natural world. MacDowell was last featured on HiFrucotose.com here.
The otherworldly and the archaeological converge in the deity-like sculptures of Huma Bhabha, who uses a blend of materials and found components to create her figures. The Pakistan native's practice has also included photography, drawings, and printmaking. Recent museum and gallery shows have offered intimate looks at her figures, in particular.
Alex Ubatuba’s glass “Living Light Sculptures” series recalls both real-life bioluminescent organisms and otherworldly flora and fauna. The glass artist has been developing this specific set of works over the last few years. This surprisingly calming work has found its way at major shows and art fairs, Burning Man, and beyond.
Rina Banerjee, known for dazzling sculptures crafted from material sourced around the globe, has her first mid-career retrospective in an exhibition at San Jose Museum of Art, kicking off this month. “Make Me a Summary of the World” begins on May 16 and runs through Oct. 6 at the space. The exhibitions is curated by the museum staffer Lauren Schell Dickens and Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts curator of contemporary art Jodi Throckmorton.
Ceramicist Lorren Lowrey crafts sculptures that examine the personal tether between growth and pain, with life often sprouting from death. The Portland artist, an oil painter earlier in life, crafts works that rich in classical undertones. Yet, the psychological themes injected create something wholly contemporary.
Whether super-sized or handheld, Colette Fu’s pop-up books marvel in both content and structure. Her work provides 3-D insight into places and cultures across the globe. And even in small doses, her ability to build upon and enhance photographs create enormous experiences.
Paul McCarthy's work traverses sculpture, painting, installation art, and film, and all are showcased in his new show, aptly titled "Mixed Bag." The show at Xavier Hufkens in Belgium, running through May 25 at the venue, takes over both of their gallery spaces. From his malformed figures to recent political reflections in video, the 73-year-old's work from the past two decades is shown.