Brett Kern fuses 80's pop culture icons into Hellenistic sculptures

Brett Kern is best known for making ceramic art pieces that deceptively look like inflatable toys. But over the course of the last few months, the West Virginia-based clay master and professor have been working hard at finishing a new series of sculptures.

The series is based on 80's pop culture characters and inspired by the Hellenistic period. In this set, you'll find everything from a drunken E.T. (a recreation of the The Barberini Faun) to a Rafael/The Dying Gaul mashup. Perhaps my favorite of the bunch (pictured below) is ALF Strangling Cat, which is based on the Greek original Boy Strangling Goose.

"I am choosing characters that I sympathize with in some capacity," Brett was quoted as saying by Nerdist.com. "When I used to play Ninja Turtles, I pretended to be Rafael because he was the badass rebel that didn't want to listen to anyone else. Fittingly, my older brother was Leonardo and we clashed often."

Brett was born and raised in Pennsylvania. He graduated in 2007 from the California University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelors in Fine Arts. In 2010, he completed his master's degree from the West Virginia University. To know more about Brett and his delightful sculptures, visit his blog or follow him on Instagram.

Comments

The Adorable Sculptures of Yen Yen Lo

These images are from a series of wall sculptures created by Yen Yen Lo . Here you can see her intricately textured ceramic pieces, looking downright adorable. Yen Yen Lo's eye for the unique and whimsical is delightful. Apparently they are not intended for kids under 16. Fifteen-year-olds cannot be trusted with fragile stuff. Get them a Funko Pop instead.

Eric Ogden and his 'Half-Remembered Season'

Michigan-born Eric Ogden produces images that look as if they were stills captured from films. What I really like about his work is his ability to execute striking photos with great use of light. Eric's portfolio includes portraits of A-list celebs, breathtaking landscapes, and other commercial stuff. His photos have appeared in The New Yorker, Esquire, The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, Vanity Fair, Time, and Rolling Stone, among others. My personal favorite is his photo series called A Half-Remembered Season , in which the subjects look like they were frozen in time. They're both intriguing and seductive. Whether it is a child on a swing in midair, a young waitress standing inside a soda shop, or a beautiful brunette floating in a swimming pool, someone is trying to tell a story. You can explore more of Eric's work on his website .

Eric van Straaten's 3D-Printed Statuettes

I can't remember when I first became entranced with Eric van Straaten 's 3D-printed sculptures. I think I stumbled onto his work through tumblr when I was searching for new artists to follow. Eric's attention to detail is pretty amazing, and the image of the eroticized child-woman is familiar throughout his work. Most of his hyper surreal pieces are 3D-printed in sandstone material, which are created by laying down a thin layer of gypsum powder and using a binding agent and color inks to print a pattern onto it. Once the entire model is printed, it is withdrawn from the print bed and the excess powder is removed. The model is then sealed and ready for display. "I think that the girls I create in my work are visualizations of my own feelings, fantasies and thoughts," the Dutch artist explains. "The girls actually look like someone I (used to) know and the different ‘portraits’ tell something about what I think of myself in regards to her or women ...

finding cain

Search This Blog