Erika Takacs started using papier maché as a substitute for clay. Trained in ceramics at George Brown College and the Gardiner Museum in Toronto, when she moved out of the city she turned to papier maché thinking she would use it until she found an adequate clay facility, but she fell in love with the medium along the way.
Fledgling, papier maché, 14″x9″x5″
Built on a wire armature, the figures are graceful, mysterious, other-worldly.
Harvest, papier maché, 13″x4″x5″
Morta
Man With Balls
Krysta
“I appeal primarily to the viewer’s emotional response, but many of my sculptures also engage/invite thoughts on our origins, our present, and our future. Recently my attention has turned to exploring the more surreal and absurd aspects of our existence.” Erika Takacs
Takacs walks you through the construction of Fledgling on her blog – you can find the post here.
These are so beautiful and graceful. I like the touches of color and the facial expressions. Papier maché is quite fun to work with and Erika seems to have mastered it. I’d love to know if she still works in clay sometimes.
Erika is so good at paper mache. I personally worked with both clay and paper mache and found it harder to work with the later. Love her style and the use of colors really draws attention the the whole piece