The distortion and transformation of the human body.
A reflection on the continuous change and transformation of life.
“The human form, subject to the relentless march of time, becomes a moving metaphor for transience. My artistic practice explores the fleeting nature of beauty, youth and life itself, using the body as a canvas to contemplate the fleeting quality of existence.”
Plaster Sculptures
Plaster Rope Acrylic
50 x 40 x 15 cm
In this part of his project, Dan Carabas captured his fleeting sculptures, which he made of bodies, rope and fabric, in plaster casts. This transformation from the transient moment of their existence into figures that remain in space was a significant departure from his previous artistic explorations. While photography, animation and painting enabled the artist to capture his vision of sculptures that exist only in the moment on a two-dimensional level, it was plaster cast that made their presence in space possible, but nevertheless remaining a reflection on the continuous change and transformation of life.
“In my experiments with the conventional art mediums through which I express my METAMORPHIC SCULPTURES, I have now finally achieved a three-dimensional representation of them. This marks the peak of a process that began with the meditative, fleeting form of a transformed body through rope and fabric and its two-dimensional images and animations. It culminates in an abstract three-dimensional form, held in space by plaster and rope. But despite the remaining sculpture, it still only shows a hollow imprint of the original creation which has already passed. Nevertheless, it’s a reflection on the continuous change and transformation of life.”
Photographs
Unique Fine-Art Print on Wood
140 x 90 x 1,5 cm
By deliberately altering the body, the final sculpture becomes dehumanised and appears in a trance-like state.
Each sculpture was captured in photographs and printed on wood as a physical work of art, the random grain of the wood gives each final work its uniqueness.
METAMORPHIC#001 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm | sold
METAMORPHIC#002 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC#003 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm | sold
METAMORPHIC#004 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC#005 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm | sold
METAMORPHIC#006 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC#007 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC#008 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC#009 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm | sold
METAMORPHIC#010 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC#011 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC#012 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm | sold
METAMORPHIC#013 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC#014 | unique | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm | sold
Paintings
Acrylic and Charcoal on Canvas
150 x 100 x 1,5 cm
Focusing on form, colour and texture, the paintings bring new perspectives to the topic of transformation and dissolution.
They continue to explore the tensions between the figurative and the abstract through rough sketches of figures and body parts that are carved out of the canvas brushstroke by brushstroke.
METAMORPHIC PAINTING | 150 x 100 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC PAINTING | 150 x 100 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC PAINTING | 150 x 100 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC PAINTING | 200 x 100 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC PAINTING | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
METAMORPHIC PAINTING | 140 x 90 x 1.5 cm
Animations
55 FullHD .mp4 files incl. sound
From 0.3 to 3 min.
Each animation consists of approximately 100 photographs morphing into a single entity.
The bodies in these animations have been altered and manipulated in a variety of ways, from the subtle to the extreme, still each animation captures the essence of the human form in its original shaped sculpture.
“My artwork is rooted in the reflection on the continuous change and transformation of life. In this, no two moments or breaths are ever identical, yet all blend into each other to form a wider picture of consciousness.
The human form, subject to the relentless march of time, becomes a moving metaphor for transience. My artistic practice explores the fleeting nature of beauty, youth and life itself, using the body as a canvas to contemplate the fleeting quality of existence.
By altering the body, my sculptures of body, rope and fabric meditatively remain in the present moment, forming an undefined whole that is both harmonious and devotional.” - Dan Carabas