International Sculptors

Constantin Brancusi (1876-1957):

He was a French/Romanian artist and sculptor.

He is said to be one of the most noticeable
artists of the 20th century and his works are
sold at high prices. He started as a traditional
sculptor working under Auguste Rodine but
later left to start his own style. He believed that
he was not doing anything great by following
the traditional method of working with making
castes so he started working on the material
directly. His style is said to be the bases of
modern style sculptures. His works are mostly
in metal, marble, wood and stone. Brancusi's studio

His inspiration for developing his specific art

style was avant garde from Paris. He was not
part of any big art movement from avant garde
but he had friends from such movements. His
work is mostly non distinct faces and figures
with smooth curves. One of his most famous
work is the sleeping muse. His work was ahead
of his time. His work gives a smooth calm feel to
it without much distractions. Most of his work is
in single piece or big pieces.
 One of his very famous sculptures and landmark
of Rome is the endless column which he was
commissioned to make as a war memorial.

“I pursue the inner, hidden reality, the very

essence of objects in their own intrinsic
fundamental nature; this is my only deep
preoccupation.” -Constantin Brancusi

"They are imbeciles who call my work abstract. That which they call abstract is the most realistic,
because what is real is not the exterior but the idea, the essence of things."
 Donald Judd (1928-1994):

Donald Judd was a renowned post war period

artist. His work is mostly big installations, His
name is added to the one of the best miniature
artists. In fact he is said to be the chief
spokesperson of the minimalistic trend. His
biggest contribution to the art world is the
article "Specific Objects". In that article he
wrote about how a object should have and
maintain its own essence in an art piece instead
of being shroud in symbolism and losing it's
core.
He mainly worked in industrial or constructional
material like other minimalist artists of that
time. His works were usually large scale and
took up a lot of space. Most of his art was based
on squares or cubes arranged in different order.

He did not like to be called a sculptor but

preferred the term 'maker of specific objects'.
 As the time passed his installations turned out
bigger and more complex. He opened a
contemporary art museum in West Texas as the
space his work took had increased. The
museum has several permanent installations of
his and some other notable artists as well.

"Actual space is intrinsically more powerful and

specific than paint on a flat surface"

"I think most of the art now is involved with a denial of any kind of absolute
morality, or general morality."
 Rachel Whiteread (1963- ):

Rachel Whiteread is a British artist. She typically

makes sculptures that have the look of castes.
The main focus of her work is how negative
spaces of an object or form would look filled
out. Her first exhibited work consisted of the
negative space of a wardrobe, bed and a
dresser. Later on she took on bigger projects
such as the white spaces of a room and full
houses.

Her initial work was bashed a lot but she is also

now called the best artist of Britain of her time.
Her main focus of the work is to show how an
form would look without it's main structure and
a filled out white space. She is the first female
to get the Annual Turner prize in 1993. Her is
currently displayed in The museum of Modern
Art and several other places. Most of her
starting work is with plaster but later she
shifted to other mediums as well. Her works
and ideas were based on modern and
contemporary art concepts. She made work for
the honor of the victims of holocaust from
Vienna. She was also commissioned for a piece
for the Olympic games.
"I don't want to make plop art- sculpture that
just gets plopped down in places. I wouldn't
want to litter every corner of the world with my
sculpture."

"I've made it as a gift to the area, something

that will brighten up someone's day."
 Carl Andre (1935- ):

Carl Andre is an American based sculptor. Carl

Andre is a poet as well. he, like Donald Judd, is
considered as the early initiators of the
minimalism movement. His first works were
inspired by the artist Constantin Brancusi but he
later diverged from the path by making his own
style.
He mostly worked in miniature and minimalism.

He is one of the first artists who worked

without their studio. The installations are not
Like other minimal artists of that time, he used pre-made but arranged on the spot of the
industrial construction material for his work. He exhibition. His art consists of straight geometric
started with material easily found like timber lines and cubes. His later work usually consisted
and later switched to metal and blocks. of metal plates arranged in a unique order. He
allowed people to walk over it. He was stuck in
a scandal due to which his work lost its value for
years but he still continues to make it.
"I mean, art for art's sake is ridiculous. Art is for
the sake of one's needs."

"A place is an area within an environment that

has been altered in such a way to make the
general environment more conspicuous."
 Niki de Saint Phalle (1930-2002):

Niki De Saint Phalle was a famous

French/American sculptor, film maker, social
activist and painter. Her art was unconventional
in a way that it talked about and demonstrated
serious topics while giving an outer fun and
colorful look. Her most famous pieces are her
nanas which is a fancier term for a French girl.

her way of escaping and dealing with her

traumas and the unfairness of the world. her
first exhibition was also about that. In that she
shot a paint gun over her sculptures. She was a
feminist which can be seen through her various
works. Her art depicted a lot of social problems
such as unequal gender rights, extreme racial
segregation, AIDS and may more. She even
wrote a book about awareness for AIDS called
She had a rough childhood which she revealed "you can't touch it holding hands". It was
in her book at the age of sixty four. Her art was translated in many language.
She made her own sculpture amusement park which was opened to the public on 1998.

She kept adding to the works in it until her death. The park's entrance was based on tarot cards and it
was full of huge sculptures. Some of them even have room in them to live. She is said to be the first ever
female monumental artist.

"Most people don't see the edginess of my

work. they think it's all fantasy and whimsy"

" Life...is never the way one imagines it. it

surprises you, it amazes you, and it makes you
laugh or cry when you don't expect it."
 Muslim Sculptors

Syed Afsar Madad Naqvi (1933-1997):

Afsar Madad Naqvi is considered as one of the

best Pakistani sculptors of the 20th century. His
first learning of art was in India when he
decided to take up calligraphy professionally.
Later he found sculpture as his focal interest
after taking up the position as a disciple in the
Lucknow. After migrating to Pakistan, he did a
solo show which was the first ever solo art
exhibition for sculpture in Pakistan. He also
opened up an Arts and Culture institute in
Karachi. His most work is about human figures
and features. He managed to convey and keep
up the traditional style of indian sculptures.

He had learned to work in all kinds of materials

but he claimed to have terracotta as his favorite
to work with. He liked sturdy material for his
sculptures and it also gave the full traditional
look of ancient indian sculptures.
 His sculptures in human figures show a
flexibility and flow of a human body. He got his
education from india where most of the art is in
line with religious connotations and dance has
great importance. His work also shows the
fluidity of a body as if it is dancing.
 Shahid Sajjad (1936-2014):

Shahid Sajjad was British Indian who migrated technique of lost wax casting method in which a
to Pakistan and learned sculpture. He was a self metal duplicate of sculpture is made.
taught artist. His life philosophy was inspired
from Baba Bulleh Shah and through this
mindset, he lived a life full of vigor and staying
his true self despite the society having
conforming views about people. He travelled
through East Asia on bike and learned many
things. On his visit to Japan he learned the
After his trip, he had his first exhibition about
expressions. His work medium of choice was
wood and metal as most of his art pieces are of
this material.

His work in the starting phase after his trip

consisted mostly of metal work because of his
grip on the wax casting method. Later he
shifted his interest back to wooden pieces.
Shahid Sajjad made big outdoor sculptures as
well as smaller ones. His work showed balance
and dependence upon others. His sculptures
contain weirdly proportioned figures that look
and give the feel of human bodies. His work
contains one or more figures holding another.
"And in that, carrying forward, I think it is
learning which should be central to everything."
 Adeela Suleman (1970- ):

Adeela Suleman is a Karachi based sculptor. She

has done two bachelor degrees and one
masters degree. Her workshop is based in
Karachi and she has done countless exhibitions
both national and international. She is a
graduate from Indus Valley of Arts, Karachi and
she is currently a teacher there. Her work
consists of a mixture of contemporary and
traditional style art pieces.
Most of her work is done in metal as it is her
favorite material to work with. Her art style
consists of traditional Pakistani and Indian
patterns infused in contemporary modern
forms.

Her art demonstrates the violence and

problems of current day Pakistan using the old
Muslim art. It is a contrast and at the same time
fusion of both the times.
“I love pushing the skill and craft of creating something to a level which I have desired but it was not an
automatic result – I would and I still do sit with my craftsmen until each leaf or stem is the way I need it
to be.”

“I don’t think people realize that to work with other people and to manipulate and bend a craft to your
favor is an art in itself,”
 Rasheed Araeen (1935- ):

Rasheed Araeen is an artist, engineer and

writer. He worked as a self taught artist for a
few years in Pakistan but then moved to UK,
England, where he now lives, to expand further.
He worked in minimalism sculptures. He was
one of the only minimalist artist in UK at that
time. His work consists of small cube like sticks
arranged in unique orders.

He takes inspiration for his art with the complex metal work old bridges that he
is familiar with. He has won awards for his contributions to the world of art and his struggle for human
rights. He has also written many articles and books, including his own biography. He translated his
articles in many languages and put them up for free to be read by people.

He also joined the black art movement. His art

pieces have a colorful geometric look to them
and one of his most famous work is 'Zero to
Infinity'. It is currently stored in the Tate's
collection.
 “My life in Britain has been my struggle against
the establishment. It took many forms – within
art, outside art, in writing, in performances, in
writing letters to the prime minister,”

"Who am I? where do I come from? How do I do

a non-European relate to a European society i
find myself living in but do not belong to? How
do I react to it's assumptions of white
supremacy?"

After his trip, he had his first exhibition about expressions. his work medium of choice was wood and
metal as most of his art pieces are of this material. After his trip, he had his first exhibition about
expressions. his work medium of choice was wood and metal as most of his art pieces are of this
material. After his trip, he had his first exhibition about expressions. his work medium of choice was
wood and metal as most of his art pieces are of this material. After his trip, he had his first exhibition
about expressions. his work medium of choice was wood and metal as most of his art pieces are of this
material. After his trip, he had his first exhibition about expressions. his work medium of choice was
wood and metal as most of his art pieces are of this material.
 Amin Gulgee (1965- ):

Amin Gulgee is a famous Pakistani sculptor and

performance artist. He first discovered his love
for art during a art history lecture in Yale. He
then went on to pursue sculpture after coming
back to Karachi. He did countless exhibitions
internationally and nationally. He is the son of
the famous late calligrapher, Ismail Gulgee. And
half keeping his father's legacy he infused it
with his passion.

He has a keen interest in Islamic calligraphy and

letters so most of his work is a about ayyats and
to be closer to God or a form of demonstration
of God's protection and power. He has the
Sufism aesthetic.

His favorite material to work with is metal. as it

is malleable. He usually makes a sculpture and
then after the exhibition he destroys it to make
the second version of the series. He has been
awarded the Pride of Performance award,
which is the highest level of honor awarded to a
civilian.
“I work in order to understand myself. It is a highly personal journey in which I try to discover a balance
with my inner self, my culture and my God”

“We are like sculptors, constantly carving out of others the image we long for, need, love, or desire,
often against reality, against there benefit and always in the end a disappointment, because it does not
fit them.”

“I work in order to understand myself. It is a highly personal journey in which I try to discover a balance
with my inner self, my culture and my God”

“We are like sculptors, constantly carving out of others the image we long for, need, love, or desire,
often against reality, against their benefit and always in the end a disappointment, because it does not
fit them.”