Ron Mueck
Have you ever heard of the film “Labyrinth“? It was a 1986 fantasy film with David Bowie playing Jareth the Goblin King. It casted stars like Jennifer Connelly, again David Bowie. But this post is not about either of the two. It’s about Ron Mueck who actually made the puppets in the film as well as contributing to the voice of Ludo.
Obviously Mueck didn’t get famous for becoming a Hollywood stud. He’s most known for his puppet work. In 1996 he transitioned to fine arts which led him to collaborated with his mother-in-law thus landing a few of his pieces in the Hayward Gallery.
After being introduce to a few high end people, Ron began collecting commissions for his work. He created Dead Dad the piece that would bring him recognition for Charles Saatchi a big time advertising agency guru.
Before moving forward here’s a bit of his background. As a child, Ron Mueck experimented with puppetry and model making, influenced by his parents’ work as toy makers. Failing selection to art school, Mueck began to work as a window-dresser before progressing to make and operate puppet animals for children’s television programs. In America in the mid-1980s he worked on The Muppet Show and Sesame Street, before settling in London where he assisted with the special effects for the films Dreamchild (1985) and Labyrinth (1986).
You probably wonder what’s the biggie about Ron Mueck. Well if you haven’t glanced at the photos yet, you will see that he actually create bigger than life size sculptures. The sculptures are detailed to the extent of scariness. He’s commissioned several pieces. However, the ones you will see in museums are a collection of his. He’s most notable for sculptures such as…Pregnant Woman, Two Women Grim, Mask ll, Big Man, Baby, and Wild Man.
If you get a chance to see this up close and personal (which I have not yet) notice how realistic the sculptures look. The materials he use are somewhere stored away in an article somewhere. But for now take a look at his work.
