Barry X Ball

A portrait, realized at 85% scale, vertically distended by a factor of 2, in a unique, fleshy
specimen of Pakistani onyx, with sinuously swirling sedimentary striations, exhibiting a
complex sfumato surface suffused with miniscule diagonal fluting overlaying a
coincident enveloping foliate relief. The artist-designed integral / modular base /
pedestal unit, it’s tapering parabolic sweep flowing into the sculpture’s glass-polished
flute stem (which, in turn, terminates in a barely-discernable silhouetted arboreal
fringe), conceived in parallel with the sculpture, precisely-fabricated in stainless steel,
acrylic-spray-lacquered aluminum and wood (and a variety of subsidiary materials) by a
studio-coordinated consortium of disparate fabricators, is reminiscent, alternately, at its
apex, of a stretched traditional socle and a Saarinen furniture pedestal. Here, in an
attempt to reinvent and reinvigorate the sub-genre of romantic portrait sculpture, the
artist has conjoined his signature fever-pitch execution intensity with a poignant
conceptual tenderness. Melancholy permeates the mix. The resultant ensemble – soft,
sensuous, striking – created with deep reverence for and specific focus on the history
of sculpture, makes an expansive case for the critical reconsideration of prevailing
contemporary practice, while simultaneously probing both the subject’s psychology
and her complex relationship to the artist. The stony anamorphic surrogate captures, in
fleshy Galatean contravention of its obdurate materiality, a moment of moving
reflection.

2007 - 2011

Pakistani Onyx

sculpture / base / pedestal ensemble: 72-5/8 x 10 x 10 inches (184.5 x 25.4 x 25.4 centimeters)
sculpture: 26-3/4 x 6-3/8 x 7-1/8 inches (68 x 16.2 x 18.1 centimeters)