Mark Aeling's work is a mixture of style and structure
that challenges the mundane and superficial. His creations nudge the viewer's imagination toward its own discoveries.
LIP SERIES
Butterfly Kiss
Stainless steel sculpture consisting of 600 individual butterflies that are uniquely contoured to the anatomy on a 6’ full pair of lips.
A Cutting Remark
Constructed with 1500 pairs of stainless steel surgical scissors, this sculpture functions as the “yang” to the ‘Butterfly Kiss’’ “yin,”. Lips can bring many things, like the soft caress of a kiss or a sharp, cutting remark.
Chromorifice
Made from over 10,000 colored pencils, Chromorifice specifically addresses pixelization. The pixels become ‘hyper-realized’ in that they are 3-dimensional, creating the contoured surface of an oversized pair of lips.
Mercurial Murmuration
The cast resin and fiberglass sculpture is partially coated in Spectrachrome for a dazzling finish that draws attention to the lips through contrast, much like a woman wearing lipstick.
SEED POD SERIES
Goat’s Head Thorn
This 4’H x 4’W x 1’D sculpture investigates the perfect proportions found in nature; in this case, the goat’s head thorn. Aeling created 5 forms in cast urethane with oxidized bronze and assembled them into a radial pattern to create the final composition.
Chrome Star Anise
Chrome Star Anise is part of Aeling’s Seed Pod Series, which explores the relationship of math and nature. Seed pods are but one example of many perfect ratios found in the natural world, a common thread through much of his work. Featured in Aeling’s solo exhibition “Objectification”, Star Anise is an edition of 5 and measures 4’H x 4’W x 1’D.
Star Anise
Star Anise is part of Aeling’s Seed Pod Series, which explores the relationship of math and nature. Seed pods are but one example of many perfect ratios found in the natural world, a common thread through much of his work. Featured in Aeling’s solo exhibition “Objectification”, Star Anise is an edition of 5 and measures 4’H x 4’W x 1’D.
Objectification
Gilded Shell
The nautilus shell is one of nature’s perfect expressions of a logarithmic spiral.
Made of polyester resin reinforced with glass fiber, the gold leafing of ‘Gilded Shell’ calls to light the natural beauty of the form. This wall mounted sculpture measures 4.5’H x 5’L x .5’D.
Illuminated Pinion
The larger-than-life Pinion sculpture investigates the intricacies of a wing form as created with contemporary industrial processes. The form is based on the anatomy of a barn swallow, known as the acrobats of birds. The subject matter has been a source of fascination for Mark since his childhood, intrigued by the notion of weightlessness in flight and the way birds seem to dance effortlessly in the air. The wing’s orientation is reminiscent of a flame, a familiar element integral to the process of creating this piece.
Featured in Mark’s solo exhibition ‘Objectification’.
HOGFISH
This hogfish consists of over 100 smaller sea creatures and features a customizable LED light, illuminating the form and all its lovely details from within. There’s something new to discover every time you look at this piece.
Measuring 4’W x 2.25’ H x .75’ D, this aluminum and acrylic sculpture was custom created for a private client.
Sliced Bison
Sliced Bison is an aluminum sculpture depicting a larger-than-life buffalo skull assembled in Mark’s signature waffled style. Reminiscent of the way in which Magnetic Resonance Imaging deconstructs a form to see beyond its surface, ‘Sliced Bison’ invites viewers to investigate deeper and consider the layers that make a whole picture. In his current work, Mark investigates how much visual information is needed to convey a concept, fascinated by the human eye’s ability to complete a form with minimal information. Completed in 2019.
PRIVATE RESIDENCE
BLOSSOM
Blossom is an aluminum wall sculpture designed for a private residence in Clearwater, Florida. The form was inspired by a study for another sliced, spherical sculpture and mimics the form of a beehive swarming with activity. Installed in 2019