Could moldy, rotten fruits be beautiful? Anything is possible for New York-based artist Kathleen Ryan. Discover this new series of over-sized fruit sculptures!
Using polystyrene foam bases and countless beads carved from precious and semi-precious stones, she then paints on the patterns of colors that indicate which part of the lemon or peach will be rotten. With steel pins that hold the array of gemstones, Ryan pierced the foam.
The precious and semi-precious stones used are malachite, opal, and smoky quartz to form the simulacrum of common green rot on each fruit.
The ultimate result of her work is mesmerizing – for a split second, the gems create an illusion of real mold, but then you realize you’ve been tricked by excellent craftsmanship. Fruits represented are lemons, peaches and oranges.
Artist Kathleen Ryan studied Studio Art and Anthropology at Pitzer College and received a Master’s of Fine Arts from U.C.L.A. This year, her work was showcased at MIT’s List Visual Arts Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts and The New Art Gallery in Walsall, U.K. Also, her works appeared as part of Desert X in Coachella, CA.
project name: ‘green-eyed monster’, ‘serptenine foam’, ‘fool’s mold’ and ‘bad peach’
