Niki de Saint-Phalle (1930-2002)
| Niki de Saint Phalle was a French sculptor, painter, and filmmaker. 'Les Nanas' and 'Three graces' Les Trois Grâces(Three graces) are three large sculptures of women who looks like they are dancing. These sculptures are made out of fiberglass, one woman has white skin, one has yellow and the other has black. Their height is about 12 feet to 15 feet, and they are all wearing colourful bathing suits. When I think of 'graces', the instant image I come up with is women like hollywood stars in mythological movies: women who are slim and pretty. In this art piece, however, three women who are not slim has been called 'graces'. Although they are not slim, they still look gorgeous and the name 'three graces' really suits them. They look happy and delighted as they are in the shape like if they are dancing. The body colours seems like they represent different races, implying that every women are beautiful no matter which race they are. Also, the dynamic colour and design of the bathing suits adds up on looking positive. |
Ron Mueck
Ron Mueck was born in Australia and had German parents. He started his career working for the children's television program 'Shirl's Neighbourhood' as a creative director. Mueck made models and puppets for the children's television shows and films.
He started making fine art sculptures from 1996. Using mediums such as resin, fiberglass, silicone, and many other materials, Mueck makes human figures that looks so realistic, while playing with the scale. The detailed sculptures are fascinating when viewed up close, as they are many times larger or smaller than the actual human size.
He started making fine art sculptures from 1996. Using mediums such as resin, fiberglass, silicone, and many other materials, Mueck makes human figures that looks so realistic, while playing with the scale. The detailed sculptures are fascinating when viewed up close, as they are many times larger or smaller than the actual human size.
What is really amazing about these artwork is that they look so real. Every single part of these work are so detail that they even look alive. They look like they are going to breathe and move anytime soon. The huge size of these artwork helped the artist to apply more detailed touch. Mueck's artwork doesn't just look real but they well express the emotion through the facial expressions and gestures. For example, the woman in bed goes beyond just look real but she looks like she is deeply thinking about something. Maybe about her son who got in trouble, or her husband who she had argument yesterday.
Louise Bourgeois
Louise Joséphine Bourgeois was a French-American artist and sculptor. She was an influential person in modern and contemporary art. Her works often express themes of betrayal, anxiety, and loneliness.
St Sebastienne, 2002
The woman looks so soft, gentle, and kind like a mother as it is made out of fabric and the face is smiling. However, the arrows that are shot at her body are metal and this scene makes quite a contrast. As such a sharp metal arrow is shot at such a soft fabric, the arrows look even sharper and the fabric looks even softer. It seems like the artist intentionally made the contrast, and it really made the message clear.
According to Wikipedia, "St Sebastienne (died c. 288) was an early Christian saint and martyr. According to Christian belief, he was killed during the Roman emperor Diocletian's persecution of Christians. He is commonly depicted in art and literature tied to a post or tree and shot with arrows. "
I am not sure why the artist made the body to look like a female body but my guess is that she did it to make the contrast even more extreme by making it female body so that it looks softer.
The woman looks so soft, gentle, and kind like a mother as it is made out of fabric and the face is smiling. However, the arrows that are shot at her body are metal and this scene makes quite a contrast. As such a sharp metal arrow is shot at such a soft fabric, the arrows look even sharper and the fabric looks even softer. It seems like the artist intentionally made the contrast, and it really made the message clear.
According to Wikipedia, "St Sebastienne (died c. 288) was an early Christian saint and martyr. According to Christian belief, he was killed during the Roman emperor Diocletian's persecution of Christians. He is commonly depicted in art and literature tied to a post or tree and shot with arrows. "
I am not sure why the artist made the body to look like a female body but my guess is that she did it to make the contrast even more extreme by making it female body so that it looks softer.