Roxy Paine

Roxy Paine is an artist and inventor. He consistently explores the definition and origins of creativity in his work. His hyper real sculptures of poison ivy, poppies, and hallucinogenic mushrooms provide a dialogue between the seemingly benign and toxic qualities of the natural world. Bluff, a leafless stainless steel tree Paine planted in Central Park during the 2002 Whitney Biennial, is a gorgeous specimen industrial in its substance and pristine in its simplicity.

Humor bordering the absurd taints most of Paine’s work. Head Cheese is no exception. The sculpture of the seemingly indefinable meat substance commonly found in grocery stores is comprised of gallons of epoxy resin to create the “gelatin.” Hundreds of bits of colored and textured epoxy resin, making the meat chunks, and the “gelatin” epoxy were combined into a loaf mold. Once cured, the loaf was sliced into two-inch thick Head Cheese slices.

Images courtesy of Graphicstudio/USF