Meszaros, Mari

“As long as I can remember I have been fascinated by the arrogant power of survival of objects that carry in themselves traces of time and human life. A pair of worn out Egyptian sandals connects me with the continuity of a culture more than impressive sculptures of pharaohs. The fragment that bears ‘the whole’ in it intrigues me more than the ‘whole’ itself.

Unknown persons in old photographs are smiling at us, people who were forgotten by everybody long ago. A trivial object, a print – a momentary record from their lives – is the only heart rending document from their former existence. People die and disappear, while eyeglasses are left lying on a table, a cigarette lighter on a shelf, silent witnesses to an intimate human moment. Indifferent survivors.

In my work I change living persons into “objects”, future documents of their present-day life. But still, these objects differ from archaeological discoveries in ice sheets and peat bogs. With the help of plaster casts that preserve their personal physical dimensions, I make sculptures that express eternal, universal human feelings. I make them from glass, a material that is as fragile as human beings, and as strong as humanity.”

Mari Meszaros graduated from the Art Academy of Budapest. Work has been presented all over Europe and the USA.  Work by Mari has been purchased by museums in Europe and de USA.