Hsu Tung Han’s wooden sculptures carry embellishments that resemble digital distortion. His “pixelated” figures weave contemporary and age-old artistic sensibilities. The Taiwanese artist stacks blocks of wood, whether it’s Walnut or African wax wood, and then crafts those pieces into surreal creations.
The artist uses clay models and sketches to dream up these complicated pieces, puzzles that must be continuously troubleshooted in order to succeed. Though toiled over and meticulously crafted, Han’s work appears to be in a transient state. Each work never seems fully formed, though each comes at the end of a laborious process.
The effect is something that could be made easier through 3D printing and other modern means, but Han’s methods are decidedly traditional. Some of his work may at first appear more classical in approach, yet close inspection yields surprises.
