What happened to sculpture?
In the beginning, it was beautiful
Sculpture is an ancient tradition that has been used for millennia as a way of pushing the artistic boundaries of a solid material. Whether it’s celebrating an individual’s achievements or philanthropy, or crafting an expression of an abstract form, sculpture has always been first and foremost, an art form.
And it is an art form that has grown from ancient and humble beginnings. Thousands of years ago we began using carving and modelling as a way of creating a likeness of deities in wood or clay. Across the globe, tools and techniques slowly evolved to allow the exploration of harder materials, allowing artisans to chisel into stone and marble. We can look to the sculptures of ancient empires in Greece and Rome, who brought new artistry to these materials. Fast forward to the Renaissance, and Italian masters had elevated sculpture to entirely new levels. Think of the water-like fabric of Giuseppe Sanmartino’s Veiled Christ. Or the outstanding craftsmanship of Bernini’s Rape of Proserpina that makes you question how the sensuality and passion of what you’re seeing could possibly be cold, hard marble. All over the world, artists were challenging the limitations of materials to innovate new ways of capturing form in the third dimension.
Admittedly, sculpture is not everyone’s bag. Artful fragments of white marble can get a little overwhelming in classical museums, and not many people can tell a Bernini from a Michelangelo. But there’s been a few news articles recently which have made me stop and wonder: what happened to sculpture?
Missing the goal
I’ll start off with a bit of old news: Emmanuele Santos’s cringe worthy attempt at capturing world famous footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo. I actually feel really bad for Santos, who was a fervent defender of his sculpture and seemed genuinely really proud of it. Jose Antonio Navarro Arteaga gave it another go, and the likeness of the second version was praised. But if all we wanted from sculpture was likeness, then why not just take a photo?
It’s still nil-nil for football sculpture
Keeping with the football theme, and bringing it back to the sculpture that inspired me to write this piece, is a newly unveiled statue of England football captain Harry Kane. Despite being completed in 2020, patrons Walthamstow Council have only just managed to find it a suitable home, after it spent almost five years in storage. I was astonished that the controversy around this sculpture focused on how much it had cost (£7.2K) and how long it had been kept under wraps; no one seemed to mention the fact that it looks more like a chocolate-covered Neil from the Inbetweeners. This sculpture is absolutely bizarre; it takes a lot of effort to make a decadent material like bronze look this cheap. But the soulless expression, solid wadge of hair, and ‘have a sit down on the loo’ position all seem to have evaded wider criticism. Have we just got used to this sub-par standard of sculpture?
A right royal mess
A little earlier this year, Antrim Castle Gardens in Northern Ireland unveiled a new sculpture by Anto Brennan of Queen Elizabeth II. To be fair, headlines did acknowledge the fact that it looks absolutely nothing like her. But likeness aside (and I really do believe there is more to a good sculpture than just likeness), the bronze is clumsy, clunky, and dull. There is no finesse to the craftsmanship, and while I don’t claim that I could do any better, I point you back to the standard of sculpture we were dealing with 600 years ago. And don’t forget, this is the late Queen of England, from a family who has seldom been short on excellent sculptors to capture their likeness (whether we like it or not).
Too many councillors spoil the… sculpture
My last example of the death of British sculpture comes from Ayr in Scotland. I actually really like the sculptural work here; the use of wire gives a suitably ghostly presence; the pose and wider positioning is thoughtful and reserved. But how can such a delicate artwork be perched on what is essentially a billboard? The ugly mass of montserrat text destroys any notion of art that we can take away from this sculpture. To me, this is the public sculpture equivalent of throwing a can of tomato soup at a Van Gogh; the hypercapitalism of logos and funders and oversized punctuation absolutely decimates the artistry of Vanessa Lawrence’s work. I simply cannot imagine what council-led conversations led to this.
Sculpture vs. Statue
I think what it comes down to in the end is statue vs. sculpture. Towns and cities across the world showcase historic sculptures, commissioned from renowned artists, and placed on pedestals (even when they’d be better off at the bottom of the Bristol harbour), but the standard of work being produced today is a world away.
The difference is: sculptures are artworks, considered for their form, composition, and iconography; their choice of material, the patina, the positioning, and everything else that requires years of study, preparation and meticulous planning. Whereas the statues we see today are just that; lifeless, 3D renderings of an approximate likeness, made for nothing more than to serve a purpose, to tick a council-funded box. It seems as though the art from public statuary has truly vanished, leaving true sculpture hidden away in abstract art spaces and sculpture gardens.