Jayson Fann’s spirit nests are scattered throughout California to support the Big Sur Spirit Garden’s numerous art and culture activites. It takes nearly a thousand man hours to complete each one. Jayson starts by judiciously pruning Eucalyptus trees of any extraneous branches. He can use other types of wood too, but Eucalyptus branches are best since they are durable as well as flexible. Creating a seemingly organic sculpure is a challenge Jayson overcomes with the help of a few, well-hidden counter sunk screws. A sturdy base and an access ladder is built separately. The whole thing is then assembled on site. As a final touch, a woven mat is added to the interior.
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The lobby of the Virginia Museum of Natural History sports a rather adorable meat-eating dinosaur. Said dinosaur is a balloon replica of an Acrocanthosaurus. It’s a study in contrast to the actual skeleton of the dinosaur standing right next to it. The sculpture was put together by Airigami, a New York based art studio specializing in gigantic balloon sculptures. The core team was headed by Larry Moss and composed of Marsh Gallagher, TJ Michael, Phil Cosmos and Dee Cosmos. It took the artists of Airigami four days to complete the 20-foot structure. They also had the help of the museum staff and a gaggle of delighted elementary students. The sculpture will stay in the museum lobby for as long as it lasts.
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Bernard Pras is a French painter, photographer and sculptor. He has spent more than 20 years perfecting his craft. One of his more recent body of work feature sculptures of pop icons made entirely out of found objects which, when viewed from a specific angle, transforms into an easily recognizable image. His subjects include Albert Einstein,, Jack Nicholson, Bob Marley, Mao Zedong, Uncle Sam, and Che Guevarra. His inspirations include Salvador Dali, Edvard Munch, Japanese woodcut artist Hiroshige, and Guiseppe Arcimboldo.
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Paul Rousso is an American sculptor who makes big bucks, literally. He uses heat infusion on plexiglass to create blown up replicas of crumpled money. Each replica can reach up to 4 feet by 5 feet. Paul also does blown up replicas of other currencies as well as magazine pages and candy wrappers. He has also worked as the art director and freelance illustrator for Revlon, Bloomingdale’s. Nast, Clairol, and Condé. His work has been exhibited at galleries in Los Angeles, Miami , New Orleans, Atlanta, and Charlotte.
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Takahiro Iwasaki is a Japanese srtist whose sculptures are in every danger of being stepped on. His small, colorful, and delicately-made constructs are usually found on floors amidst haphazardly strewn towels. You might need magnifying glass to truly appreciate Takahiro’s work. His topographical maps carved out of electrical tape are my personal favorites. They’re accurate right down to the ravines, buildings, and peirs found on a real topographical map. His work has beed displayed at galleries around the world. Recently, he had a collection of his works on display at the 7th Asia Pasific Triennial of Contemporary Art in Queensland.
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Barbara Franc’s latest collection of sculptures is all about colorful tropical birds whose haitat are slowly dwindling due to deforestation. As tribute to them, her sculpturea are made antirely of reclaimed materials like old food tins. She said: “I have always been fascinated by the shapes and sculptural forms of animals, they present a never-ending source of inspiration to me. I try to capture a feeling of their movement and presence in my sculpture. For this I use wire and other materials in a way that suggests drawing in three dimensions. This allows me greater freedom to add changes whenever I want during the construction to keep the feeling fluid and to reflect the diversity of movement and form. I increasingly use recycled and discarded materials as I enjoy the challenge of transforming something with a past history into something new and exciting.”
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Maskull Lasserre is a is a singularly talented wood carver currently based in Montreal. He was born in Canada in 1978 and spent a bit of his childhood in South Africa. He has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Visual Art and Philosophy as well as a Master of Fine Arts Degree in Sculpture. His latest series “Fable” feature macabre carvings of animals, skeletons, and even a hangman’s noose cleverly incorporated right into everyday wooden furniture. He said: “When the remnants of life are imposed on an object, and that’s true especially with the carving work that I do, it infers a past history or a previous life that had been lived, so again where people see my work as macabre, I often see it as hopeful, as the remnants of a life. Despite the fact that the life has ended, at least that life had a beginning and middle as well, so often by imparting these bodily elements to inanimate objects it reclaims or reanimates them in a virtual way.”
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“Burnout” is a collection of gigantic matchsticks with burned-out human heads. Pieces of the matchstick men are strewn all over the floor or framed in their very own matchbox coffin. The exhibit is the work of German artist Wolfgang Stiller. It was displayed at the Python Gallery at Zurcich from March 8 until April 20, 2013. The pieces are a reference to overworked (and most likely underpaid) employees.
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Marta Klonowska’s sculptures may look adorable, but you wouldn’t want to pet them. They’re made from thousands of carefully arranged pieces of broken glass. Her collection include hounds, hares, deer, and foxes; all posing as if in a hunt. These glittering, life-sized glass animals are based on animals found in baroque and romantic paintings. Her creations are often displayed right next to paintings by Francisco de Goya or Peter Paul Rubens.
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Mu Boyan was born in the Shangdong province of China. In 1997, he graduated from the Central Academy of Fine Arts with a degree in Fine Arts. He obtained her Master’s degree in 1995 from the same university. His work has extensively been exhibited throughout the world. One of his more recent work tackles the touchy subject of obesity by featuring an adorable, but undeniably fat Sumo wrestler. Fat is fat, but there are two ways of looking at it. While an excess of adipose tissue may be unattractive to Westerners, in the East, it’s a sign of decadent wealth. After all, only people who can afford to be fat are those who can afford to eat more food than they absolutely have to.
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