Figurines

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A figurine is a small statue of either a person, an animal or a deity/mythological creature. They can be sculpted, molded or cast. They have been made in all regions and eras. While today they are often associated with tacky knickknacks some are quite beautiful and evocative.

These examples, and those after the jump are from the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. There are many more examples at that link.    

Toru Fukuda's wooden insects

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Toru Fukuda is a Japanese woodworker and artist. He is best known for his small carved insect pieces. The colors come from inlaying different colored woods. These images, and those after the jump, are samples of his work. You can find more in the above link to his gallery pages. 

Toru Fukuda

“The Miraculous Journey” By Damien Hirst

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The Miraculous Journey by Damien Hirst is a series of 14 sculptures showing the development of a foetus. They series starts with conception and ends with a baby boy. The sculptures are located at the Sidra Medical and Research Center in Qatar.

The pictures are from Opening the Sky. There are more pictures of the set at the link.

The Release from Deception

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Il Disinganno (The Release from Deception) is an 18th century sculpture by Francesco Queirolo. It features an elaborately carved net that the main figure is freeing himself from, allegorical of a man freeing himself from sin. It took Queirolo 7 years to carve the net from marble. The intricacy of the net's ropes and knots is truly a remarkable achievement.

The Boxer at Rest

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The Boxer at Rest is a bronze Hellenistic sculpture dating from somewhere between 330 - 50 B.C. Rather than showing a heroic figure, it shows a battered boxer. His nose is broken, his lip is split and he has cauliflower ears as well as numerous cuts. The statue also has copper inlaid to represent splattered blood.

Japanese craftmanship

These videos are from the YouTube channel Aoyama Square. They show various example of traditional craftmanship and are very nicely filmed. Above is a woodworker making tubs and barrels. Below are examples of copper casting, wood carving and textile dyeing. There are a lot more videos at the link.

The cardboard sculptures of Chris Gilmour

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Chris Gilmour is a UK artist who currently works out of Italy. He creates sculptures, most of them life sized, out of nothing more than cardboard and glue. His attention to detail is striking.

There are more examples of his work after the jump, and more at his website.