Bjørn Okholm Skaarup

Hippo Hula Hoop Dancer, maquette

2024

Danish, b. 1973 Bjorn Skaarup holds a MA in History and Art History from the University of Copenhagen, and a PHD in History from the European University Institute in Florence, Italy. Skaarup has also furthered his education with post-doctoral studies at the Warburg Institute, London and Columbia University, New York In addition to his career as a self-taught sculptor, Skaarup has written and illustrated numerous books on historical, archaeological, and anatomical subjects. "My animal sculptures represent a number of characters that have been given man-made and cultural tools and attributes that underline their particular traits – the dignity and supremacy of the majestic lion, the chivalrous nature of the ermine, the speed of the cheetah, the height of the giraffe, and the heavenly aspirations of the ostrich... The sculptures are a celebration of life and nature and its many intriguing shapes and creatures, all placed in peculiar and surreal encounters between nature and culture. The result is a group of bronze sculptures that combines the gracious and exclusive with the communicative, distorted and humorous." Okholm Skaarup has created a contemporary bestiary, or classical book of animals, in bronze. Each sculpture presents a whimsical story or allegory to decipher, with sources ranging from ancient fables and art history to music and modern animation. The Majestic Lion, traditional king of the animals, wears the crown and armor of a great monarch in the style of Medici court sculptor Giambologna, yet he sits astride a rocking horse, a reference to his fleeting and jovial power. Frogs reenact Homeric battles in the Batrachomyomachia and Micenaean Horse, while mice peer through spectacles and listen at telephones as The Five Senses. A cheetah rides a scooter to move faster, a giraffe stands on stilts to reach higher, and a kangaroo bounces on a pogo stick—a “kængurustylte” in Okholm Skaarup’s native Danish. From 1994 to 2004, Okholm Skaarup was an artist at the Danish National Museum, Copenhagen, before moving to Florence and receiving a PhD from the European University Institute in 2009. While in Florence, he studied the work of Renaissance sculptors Donatello, Michelangelo, and Giambologna, learning the vanishing art of large-scale bronze casting. “I am constantly trying to improve my skills in modeling, and see how far the medium can go,” Skaarup explains. “How many fun details you can add, how many forms you can create—ideally large, heavy forms that rest on light foundations, so the work appears as vibrant as possible. With bronze, you can make the most dynamic shapes imaginable.” In Okholm Skaarup’s intricately polychrome work, he explores the voluminous form of a tutu and leotard-clad hippo, which at once references Degas’s Little Dancer of Fourteen Years and Disney’s Fantasia...

Bjorn Skaarup Biography Danish, b. 1973 Bjorn Skaarup holds a MA in History and Art History from the University of Copenhagen, and a PHD in History from the European University Inst...

Edition 1/9 Bronze with fabric skirt Bjorn Skaarup, Danish, b. 1973 Bjorn Skaarup holds a MA in History and Art History from the University of Copenhagen, and a PHD in History from...

Edition of 9 Bjorn Skaarup (Danish, b. 1973) holds a MA in History and Art History from the University of Copenhagen, and a PHD in History from the European University Institute in ...

"With Spirit's Edge" by Denny Haskew Figurative Bronze 10.5x23.5x19" Ed/20 "It is time, Be still, Listen​. Let the honor beats of your heart now drum in your ears. Two life path ways are before you. Which one guides us home?" -DH Shipping price includes the custom packing necessary for safe transport of fine art. ABOUT THE ARTIST: Denny Haskew currently resides in Loveland, Colorado where he is actively engaged in the art industry as a sculptor. He received his degree from the University of Utah, then served two years in the United States Army during the Vietnam War. Having spent numerous years as a guide and ski instructor, Denny has learned to love the rivers and mountains of the western states of Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, and Utah. After moving to Loveland, a hub of successful working sculptors, he wasted no time in getting monumental sculpture experience through working with renowned sculptors including Fritz White and Kent Ullberg...

"Veteran of Wounded Knee" by Denny Haskew Figurative Bronze Bust of a Native American 10.5x23.5x19" Ed/20 "Proud Man look this way coyote sittin on your head, good for foolin the s...

The Anatomy of a Golfer Il, Atelier is the second in Richard MacDonald's series of golfers that were inspired by the creation of his heroic sculpture,...

The Anatomy of a Golfer l, Atelier is the first in Richard MacDonald's series of golfers that were inspired by the creation of his heroic sculpture, M...