Captured In Time

Photographs are the main inspiration for Gregor Gaida who sculpted these mind-blowing, storytelling, work of art. He stated, "The focus of my interest lies on composition and the protaganists' pose in the images as well as on the openness in interpreting their actions. A special meaning lies in the gesture that indicates cultural, social or political discrepancies."

In a few of his work, he crops his subject matter in reference to photographer's or painter's choice of framing their piece of work, acceptable to the general audience. While applying this crop to a three-dimensional work is disconcerting, yet it reminds the viewing they are witnessing a portion of the scene and forcing them to visually complete the story. This is usually the case with most of his work. A subject frozen and captured in time, offering the viewing to decipher the situation.

Gregor Gaida has a background in photography and painting, who sculpts in combination of wood, aluminum, polyester and acrylic resin.

Environmental Issues

These powerful sculptures of animal and nature combined with human parts has a magnetic eye-catching effect. Kate MacDowell stated in her artist statement, "In my work this romantic ideal of union with the natural world conflicts with our contemporary impact on the environment. These pieces are in part responses to environmental stressors including climate change, toxic pollution, and gm crops."

Kate usually starts with words to describe her work prior to envisioning her pieces in order to start the process of sketching and sculpting. She uses modern technology for research, i.e., Google, to search for images for references, as well as any visual imageries she collects from her many travels. Kate MacDowell uses porcelain clay for her artwork which normally take 3 days to a month to sculpt and additional 2 weeks for firing and finishing. Her work has been exhibited globally with numerous write ups.

Exhibitions:

Mindy Solomon Gallery (group exhibition)

St. Petersburg, Florida, USA

April 10 - May 15, 2010

Patrajdas Contemporary Art (group exhibition)

Chicago, Illinois, USA

April 30 - May 3, 2010

artKitchen Gallery

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

May 2010

bo.lee Gallery

Bath BA1 1HE, United Kingdom

June 26 - July 10, 2010

Dissection Of Microbotics

From spiders, insects, and mechanical hands and heads, these jaw dropping sculptures have blown me away. The anatomy looks precise and the work projects a sense of realism with a stylized and compelling vision. For the passion of biomechanics, anatomy, and robotics, Christopher Conte began working in the prosthetics field making artificial limbs for amputees for 16 years as a Certified Prosthetist. He left the field to become a full-time artist as a Biomechanical Sculptor.

Christopher Conte's statement to Monzuki, "I usually have a solid image in my head and set out to find (or make) the parts required to capture the aesthetics I'm looking for. On average, my pieces take several weeks to a month to create although some larger pieces have taken several months."

Upon Christopher's first exhibition at the Last Rites Gallery, one of his sculptures was inducted to display at the National Museum in Washington, DC. His work has appeared on The Discovery Channel, Discover Magazine, Wired Magazine, MTV Networks and Popular Science Magazine.

Christopher Conte graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Fine Arts from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. He is currently living in New York. On average, his pieces sell in the $3,000-$5,000 range.

Beauty Of Virology

These eye-catching glass sculptures are presented with amazing detail. As beautiful as it looks, they are ironically deadly. Luke Jerram worked with virologist from the University of Bristol to sculpt these transparent glass to represent viruses and bacteria. He explained how images of viruses are taken in black and white photographs. The color is added for scientific purpose to create an emotional response or to make them more attractive, leading the public in a misguided perception. Luke created this series to bring in detail and tangible comprehension to the public in a form of three-dimensional representation which offers a different perspective in virology.

These sculptures are on permanent display at Wellcome Collection in London, and in Bristol City Museum. Luke Jerram won an Institute for Medical Imaging Award for his artwork. Check out his website for a detailed artist statement as well as his other projects.

Painting With Clay

Working in Premo polymer clay and wires, Meredith Dittmar created these amazing, illustrative and colorful sculptures using symmetrical, geometric and organic shapes. She came from a family of engineers, but during her freshman year in college, Meredith discovered polymer clay in a bead store which changed her life. She slowly migrated from a Flash designer and developer to sculpting full-time. In addition to sculpting for galleries, she created "My Guys" which is for sale through her website as well as creating commercial illustration with clay. Meredith is located in Portland, Oregon. The images posted are currently on display at the Upper Playground in Mexico City, ending February 6, 2010.

Like Body, Like Mind

Beth Cavener Stichter quoted, "I rely on animal body language in my work as a metaphor for these underlying patterns, transforming the animal subjects into human psychological portraits." She explains the similarities of human and animal body language, as well as the nature of the message through the subconscious mind.

Beth uses clay to sculpt these amazing art, as she explains, "I have always linked the materiality of flesh and the memory of it with clay." Her larger pieces would take 3 to 5 months to complete. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Sculpture from Haverford College, and Master of Fine Arts in Ceramics from The Ohio State University. Visit her website for additional work as well as her upcoming shows and workshops.

Paper Forms

These amazing sculptural artwork are hand crafted entirely with paper. Richard Sweeney was determined to become a graphic designer until his discovery for sculpture at Batley School of Art and Design.  He continued his education at Manchester Metropolitan University to study Three Dimensional Design where he experimented with sheet materials of paper, cardboard and laminated wood.  He originally designed these sculptures as prototypes before applying a more durable materials, but Richard calls them, "finely crafted objects in their own rights."

Richard Sweeney is an artist and a designer based in Huddersfield, England.  He will be displaying his art (represented by Victor Felix Gallery) at the Affordable Art Show in Battersea Park, London, from March 11-14, 2010.