Figurative Sculptures

 

Natural, air-dry clay, acrylic paint, wood

Dimensions of left sculpture and base: 4.5" x 8" x 2"

Superficial, air-dry clay, acrylic paint, wood

Dimensions of right sculpture and base: 4" x 8.5" x 1.5"

These figurative sculptures are representative of the dangers of social media infatuation. The sculpture on the right is indicative of a person who is indulgent in social media and is easily influenced by likes, comments, and trends. This sculpture is titled Superficial to reflect the person it depicts. This sculpture displays a person who has given into the beauty norms that social media has dictated, such as getting a breast augmentation and a nose job to look a certain way. This person also wears hair extensions and extensive amounts of makeup in order to "blend in" with society and fit the norms that the media has created. Her lips are bright pink to hint at superficiality and egocentricity. This person has her phone turned on in front of her, with hearts swirling around it to indicate social media likes. This person is infatuated with social media, the trends it creates, and the validation it can give to those who are really searching for it. Her base is pink to reflect superficiality, and is composed of two balancing triangles to display instability. As could her social media platform, and thus her sense of self-worth and confidence, her base could toppled at any moment. On the other hand, the sculpture on the left displays a person that is completely detached from social media. Her base is gold to convey that she has a heart of gold, untouched by the superficiality of social media, and the base is composed of blocks to show stability and foundation. The bright pink on this sculpture is found at the heart. Similar to the first sculpture, this piece is titled Natural to reflect the kind of person being depicted. This person wears her hair naturally and does not wear any makeup. Instead of having her eyes open and looking at her phone like the latter sculpture, her eyes are closed and she is smiling. Her phone is turned off and behind her, showing that she does not care for the false sense of importance that social media carries. She is more focused on herself rather than her online presence. She does not have plastic surgery, as she has not been swayed to follow the beauty norms created by society. These sculptures represent the two polarities of the modern day generation that has access to social media.