Ron Mueck Exhibition

Ron Mueck is an Australian hyperrealist sculptor working in the UK. His sculptures faithfully reproduce the minute detail of the human body, but play with scale to produce disconcertingly jarring visual images.

A major retrospective of his work was held in his home town of Melbourne in April. All his works are truly amazing and I couldn't believe that I had spent over 3 hours there!

The exhibition started with "Dead Dad", the first work which made Mueck's name.

"Dead Dad" is a rather haunting silicone and mixed media sculpture of the corpse of Mueck's father reduced to about two thirds of its natural scale. It is the only work of Mueck's that uses his own hair for the finished work.

Then, a huge baby caught my eyes - "A girl".

My first impression was -- awful!

After a detailed look into the sculpture, I started to fall in love with this baby girl. Being a mother, I knew that a new born baby is really like this. However, our love towards a newborn has sent different signal to our brain.

It really has reproduced the minute detail of the human body. Look at the gesture of the baby, she's holding her fists tight because she's entered into a new environment very different from the womb. She's covered with some blood, with part of umbilical cord and long nails.

"Wild Man" is a nine-foot sculpture of a naked, bearded, fearful man clutching the stool he is seated on. Seems that he's wondering: "What's wrong with me? Why are you all staring at me like this?"

I can even feel that he's cold by looking at the goose bumps on his body.

"Youth" is a diminutive figure of African or African-American youth.

But why are these people looking like this, is there something wrong with this little guy?

Oh my God, this guy is actually holding up his T-shirt to examine a wound in his belly.

What is a "still life"? It is something dead. And yes, here comes a huge dead chicken!

"Still Life" is a slaughtered and plucked chicken, same size as a human being, hung from hook by its feet.

I wonder if I'd had chicken again in a few months time after seeing it in such a detail...

"Drift" is a 2/3 scale man floating on his back on an inflatable raft, wearing sunglasses and swimming trunks.

"Mask II" is a huge head lying on its side as if he's asleep, the face appears to be Mueck's own.

"Man in a boat" is a 1/3 scale naked man seated toward the prow of a 4-metre-long rowing boat.

"In bed" is a HUGE woman lying in bed, hand raised to her face in a contemplative pose. I was wondering how could the bedding looked so soft? And the answer is, it's a real bedding sheet...

"Two women" is two diminutive, clothed, elderly women, standing as though gossiping.

Who dare to interrupt them?

"Old women in bed" is a 1/2 scale very elderly or dying woman draped in blankets lying in bed. She looked really sick and I felt so sad when looking at her.

Last but not least, "Woman with sticks" is a 180cm high model of naked woman, bent backwards and carrying huge bundle of sticks.

I found this exhibition inspiring because by playing with scale, Mueck showed me something that I have never think of but so true and real. I was also emotionally connected to some of his sculptures, as if they were alive. Mueck not only had made their body, you can feel and see their soul through their eyes and gesture. What an amazing journey it was.