Eileen Gray on Psychedelics
Imagine Eileen Gray on psychedelics. She's running about her NYC studio melting bronze side tables to create miniature breasts and yanking leathers from her Monte Carlo sofas to create little horns. Had Eileen been under the influence, we may have had these brilliant pieces back in the roaring twenties. Alas, times are roaring again now that we've made it past the rigidity of modernism. The Haas Brothers, a duo based in Los Angeles, have taken Postmodernism by its leathery horns and created a collection of "objects" with style and instant intoxication. For me, they provide balance in a world where you're constantly asking "did that just happen," or "did I really just see that." Creativity comes from fantasy and wanderlust. It comes from stimuli with shock value. Ask yourself, have you ever been launched into action by a NY Times article or Lifetime commercial. Chances are the answer is "never." We're influenced most by simple and oftentimes minuscule things. Inanimate objects that we can breathe our own stories and life into. It may be the grandma puffing a cigarette at a ZZ Top slot machine. Whatever it is, it's these bizzaro observations that turn us into storytellers. When we find a subject or object, we naturally create a dialogue for them. The Haas Brothers offer an endless amount of both objects and subjects for us to anthropomorphize and personify. Have a look.
Brad Sitt sculpture in White Icelandic sheepskin, with cast bronze Small Furry Feet, Small Hands version A, Small Boobs, and Tongue. Designed and made by The Haas Brothers, USA, 2016.
Gomer Pyeland small single dune sculpture from the Afreaks series. Designed and made by The Haas Brothers and The Haas Sisters, South Africa.
Unique Dick Drake Mini Beast in Brown Icelandic sheepskin with cast bronze Large Mouth, Large Erect Dong, and Short Pickle Feet.
Ceramic Accretions (2016)
Mini Beasts. Fur, Ebony, Cast Bronze, Leather. (2014)
Afreaks Series. Beaded Sculpture. Cast Bronze. (2016)