nails

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Art

Mysterious Wooden Characters Adorned with Leaves and Nails by Jaime Molina

Heads facing downward, eyes closed, the figures inhabiting the world of painter and sculptor Jaime Molina (previously) seem to be in a state of deep contemplation or sorrow. Or maybe they’re just hungover and taking a nap. The mystery is part of Molina’s intention as he assembles these strange characters from found wood to inhabit his fictional world called “Cutty Town” — he refers to the objects themselves as “Cuttys”. At once strangely familiar and approachable, the pieces sprout hairdos of bent nails, cacti, and leaves that add more questions left only to the viewer to answer.

The Colorado-based based artist most recently exhibited several works with Stefanie Chefas Projects in Portland and Galería UNION in Buenos Aires, and he has a few works available through Thinkspace Gallery. (via Juxtapoz, Creators Project)

Art

Figurative Found Wood Sculptures Pierced with Hundreds of Nails by Jaime Molina

Artist Jaime Molina works in 2, 2.5, and 3 dimensions, translating his aesthetic from large-scale paintings to sculptures, while also producing pieces that exist somewhere in-between. In this particular series, Molina has focused on bearded wooden heads, utilizing nails to form the hair of each of his subjects. Despite being placed haphazardly and with alternating sizes, the nails give the sculptures a uniform look, adding dimension to the male heads formed from found wood.

A few of the works open to showcase a center skull, intrinsic sculptures that are either left as raw wood or painted in a similar manner as his public murals. You can see more of the Denver-based artist’s sculptures and murals on his Instagram. (thnx, Laura!)

Art

New Nail Sculptures by John Bisbee That Twist Across Floors and Walls

John Bisbee (previously) has worked with nails as a sculptural medium since he accidentally toppled a bucket of them years ago and was astonished to see how they remained intact, rusted and fused into a single object. Every since, he’s been hammering nails of varying size into complex patterns, using the smallest woodworking nails up to giant 12-inch spikes. Although nails large and small continue to be the focus of his artistic practice, his sculptures remain diverse in their presentation and composition, twisted works making wildly chaotic patterns against walls and neatly arranged nails snaking along gallery floors.

Bisbee currently has two solo exhibitions on view including “Floresco” at the SCAD Museum of Art (through January 3, 2016) and “Only nails, always different” at the PCA&D Gallery (through the end of December). His work is also included in the 2015 Portland Museum of Art Biennial titled “You Can’t Get There From Here” through January 3, 2016.

Art

Only Nails, Always Different: Artist John Bisbee’s Life of Sculpting with Nails

While in college, artist John Bisbee was scavaging in an abandoned house looking for items to incorporate into a series of found-object sculptures when he kicked over a bucket of old rusty nails. To his astonishment, the nails had fused together into a bucket-shaped hunk of metal. He had an epiphany. Bisbee has since spent nearly 30 years using nails as his sole medium to create geometric sculptures, organic installations, and unwieldy objects from thousands of nails that are hammered, bent, welded, or fastened together in a seemingly limitless procession of forms. His mantra: “Only nails, always different.” He shares with American Craft, “A nail, like a line, can and will do almost anything. What can’t you draw with a line? The nail is just my line.”

Bisbee is currently an artist in residence at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, and had an exhibition at Shelburne Museum earlier this year. He was recently profiled in American Craft’s Material Crush issue featuring 30 artists working in unusual mediums, almost half of which have been featured right here on Colossal. Definitely worth a look. (via American Craft)

Art

New Portraits by Kumi Yamashita Made with Nails, Thread, and Denim

Two new portraits this morning from one of my favorite artists Kumi Yamashita (previously). The first one is part of her Constellation series titled Mana #2. The portrait is made from a single unbroken sewing thread wrapped through a dense network of galvanized nails, a process that takes several months. The second artwork, Mother #2, is part of her ongoing Warp and Weft series where Yamashita works with a panel of black denim and then meticulously cuts threads from the fabric to form an image. If you happen to be in California, both works will be in a group show from April 20th through June 1st, 2013 at Scott White Contemporary Art in La Jolla. You can also now follow the artist over on Facebook.