I love it when artists take something that is familiar and create a new experience for the viewer. Take these beautiful woven pieces made by Canadian artist Brian Jungen. Can you believe they were made from professional sports jerseys?
At first glance, Jungen's sculptural works look like a contemporary homage to Native American art. But when you realize his art is fashioned from found objects, particularly sports paraphernalia, the meaning of his work becomes even that much more profound.
In the photos above, one can clearly recognize totem poles and an indigenous mask, items that hold sacred significance in the Native American culture. When you look closely though, you can see that Jungen uses golf bags to form the totems and Nike Air Jordans to create the mask. It's a brilliant statement of today's professional sports culture and how it's become a ritualistic, almost spiritual tradition for the masses.
Baseball mitts were used to create this warrior-like gear, and on the right is an antler sculpture made from leather shoes.
Jungen works with a variety of materials, including metal, fabric, wood, and plastic. Here are two works of art created from plastic objects. The igloo shaped piece is made from trash bins and the whale skeleton from plastic lawn chairs. Amazing!
[images courtesy of the artist, Casey Kaplan Gallery, and Catriona Jeffries Gallery]
To listen to Jungen talk about some of these works, go here.
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