2014
Toronto-based artist and sculptor Sophie Defrancesca creates lifelike wire mesh sculptures of dresses, gowns and other figurative works that are capable of fooling the eye from a distance. Her finely twined bodices, adorned with Swarovski crystals, fit exhibition spaces as easily as they would a fashion runway.
DeFrancesca was ten years old when her mother passed away, leading to an interest in maternal figures. An immigrant who fled wartime Europe, DeFrancesca’s mother was resilient and fashionable, often captured in photographs wearing beautiful clothing handmade by family members. As a child, DeFrancesca used these pictures to create clothing for her dolls, both as a way of remembering her mother and to engage with her fascination with vintage apparel. DeFrancesca later graduated in 1990 from the Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD) and in the early 2000s, she began using wire mesh as a design material to examine rigidity in fashion and the role of femininity. She shaped the galvanized steel mesh into life-size human forms.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, she has expanded her practice into laser-cut plexiglas to allow for more intricate detailing that furthers the illusion. She has exhibited in group and solo shows across North America, including at the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies in Banff, Alberta; the Sheldon Museum of Art in Lincoln, Nebraska; and at various spaces in Toronto, Montreal, New York and Miami. Her 2022 exhibitions included shows at the Newzones Gallery Of Contemporary Art in Calgary and the Oeno Gallery in Prince Edward County, Ontario.
On 1stDibs, find a collection of Sophie DeFranesca’s sculptures and mixed media.
Ms. Universal Love
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Golden Era
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Rebirth of Venus
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Just Too Much
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Ms. Parallel Universe
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Black Venus
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Blue Moon
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Champagne Celebration
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Blue Aphrodite
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Control of the Masses 20
By Sophie DeFrancesca
Located in Montreal, Quebec
Toronto artist Sophie DeFrancesca has always been fascinated by vintage fashion. Pictures of her mother wearing gorgeous frocks from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s served as a connection to...
Mixed Media
Assist - surrealist, abstract, male, figurative, bronze tabletop sculpture
By P. Roch Smith
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This indoor figurative bronze sculpture comes from the imagination of Canadian artist Roch Smith. The clever sculptures of Roch Smith are often inspired by images, forms and texture...
Bronze
Shimmer 1/12: Bronze Sculpture, Contemporary Figurative, 2010, Signed
By Jeremy Guy
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This abstract figurative indoor sculpture is made of bronze by Jeremy Guy. The elegant sculptural work of Jeremy Guy has garnered him an impressive international following. He is kn...
Bronze
Celestine - expressive, textured, female, figurative, paper mache sculpture
By Paul Duval
Located in Bloomfield, ON
This lithe, elegant female figure was sculpted by Quebec artist Paul Duval. One of a series of paper mache, wire and metal table top pieces, each one imbued with a distinct personality. Duval uses simple gestures, posture, and colour to convey each character’s individuality. Celestine is clothed in a royal blue gown...
Wire
Charlie - Mixed Media Sculpture, Contemporary Style, 2010s
By Paul Duval
Located in Bloomfield, ON
Quebec artist Paul Duval has captured the essence of human characters with his uniquely charming series of table top sculptures. Charlie stands tall and lean, hand-formed in wire and...
Mixed Media
Cwén- figurative, female, polymer, gypsum, tabletop sculpture
By Frances Semple 1
Located in Bloomfield, ON
In a new series of abstracted figurative sculptures, Frances Semple is having fun with form. With this piece created from a polymer/gypsum material, a female figure's upper body is s...
Resin, Polymer
Monochromatic Variant - dark, abstract, pop art, painted aluminum sculpture
By Viktor Mitic
Located in Bloomfield, ON
Captivated by the colour, form, and pattern of paint splatterings on the floor of his Toronto studio, artist Viktor Mitic re-imagined them as compelling abstract sculptures. Monochro...
Metal
