Man in Mask
1999
Wooden figurative sculpture has played an important role in German art since the Middle Ages. In 1982 Balkenhol began to make rough-hewn, sketchily painted wood sculptures from single pieces of lumber. He often makes his figures larger or smaller than life-size. Although they do not depict specific individuals, these works cannot be called generic or characterless. Balkenhol's formal presentation echoes the language of public monuments even though the individual on the pedestal looks like someone plucked from a crowd. Bandits in popular romances about the American West inspired this masked figure, but it is unclear whether he is the hero or the villain.
Poplar wood and paint
50 x 17 1/2 x 10 1/8 in. (127.0 x 44.5 x 25.7 cm)
Gift of Agnes Gund and Daniel Shapiro in honor of Virginia and Bagley Wright
99.38
