Sculpture Post #3

Massachusetts Sculptor Challenges Stereotypes

            Looking around, I found an interesting article about the Charlotte Fine Arts Show where a sculptor named Michael Alfano exhibited his work. This event, held October 9-10 2010, displayed many different types of sculpture, pottery, paintings, and more, but it was Alfano’s work that really brought in the crowds.

            Alfano, who studied at the Art Students League of New York and then at Boston University, has worked on various public monuments such as a variety of Holocaust memorials and sculptures “of Hope” for Mothers Against Drunk Driving. However, Charlotte’s Fine Arts Show displayed Alfano’s work for its stereotype-bending ideas.  According to the QNotes article, Alfano explained that he is “obsessed” with the human form because it “captures our attention and speaks to us dramatically.”

Figure A

One of his most striking pieces of artwork is a sculpture he calls “And/Or” (See Figure A) where he explores the idea that “every person is on a spectrum of male and female attributes” and that “equality…is one of many issues he finds important.” Alfano is right and it is not hard to see through his artwork that Alfano knows what he’s talking about. Gender roles and stereotypes have caged society and “And/Or” is just one depiction of the greater problem; the fact that even though every individual consists of both stereotypical male and female characteristics, we are condemned within our society for showing these “other” sides of our selves.

Figure B

Through a bit more research of Alfano and his work, I discovered another sculpture that truly grasps onto the idea of stereotypes in sculpture. Cubed (see Figure B) delves into the idea of racial differences in society and how although each piece of his “sculptural puzzle” is of a different ethnic background, he understands that together it builds a full human being. We may all look different, but we are the same at our core. Another aspect of Cubed that garners a lot of attention is the fact that on the back of this racially diverse male portrait is another racially diverse female portrait. This allows viewers to see that it does not matter what gender or race a person is, everyone is the same deep down.

Now that you have learned a bit about Alfano and the background behind Cubed, take a look at this four-minute long You Tube clip showing all of the variations possible with Alfano’s “sculptural puzzle” along with quotes from Alfano himself talking about his feelings on the issues behind the sculpture.

Works Cited

Alfano, Michael. "Cubed by Michael Alfano." YouTube. YouTube, 09 Feb. 2012. Web. 21 Apr. 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaUQosmkKPo>.

Alfano, Michael. "Monuments and Other Public Art." Monuments & Public Art by Michael Alfano. Web. 21 Apr. 2012. <http://www.malfano.com/monuments.html>.

DeVere, Tyler. "Sculptor Challenges Stereotypes, Gender Roles at Charlotte Fine Arts Show." QNotes. Pride Publishing & Typesetting, Inc., 2 Oct. 2010. Web. 21 Apr. 2012. http://goqnotes.com/8639/sculptor-challenges-stereotypes-gender-roles-at-charlotte-fine-arts-show/.