Instead of carving a sculpture from one material, Gil Bruvel slowly builds his masterpieces with numerous parts. The Texas-based artist’s ongoing project The Mask Series features large-scale sculptures of human faces, all of which are made from assembling colored wooden blocks of varying sizes.
From afar, these portraits appear highly realistic, but the closer you are to the piece, the more pixelated it becomes. Bruvel achieves an impressive level of detail by mixing a range of different-sized wooden pieces. Larger blocks make up the periphery of the mask, while smaller and finer pieces are used to create the eyes, nose, and lips.
As a result of the sculptures’ tactile quality, when light hits the surface, it highlights the contours of the faces and creates shadows under the nose and jaw. Most of these pieces possess enigmatic expressions that are hard to decipher, while others are clearly smiling or frowning. All of the masks have their eyes closed, however, making it seem as though they were captured in a moment of contentment or tranquility.
Scroll down to see more amazing sculptures by Bruvel, and follow the artist on Instagram to keep up to date with his latest projects.
Artist Gil Bruvel creates abstract sculptures of faces from colored pieces of wood.
Titled The Mask Series, these pieces are made by stacking wooden blocks together.
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The unique method of constructing the sculptures makes them seem pixelated up close.
You can see the varied texture of these faces when the artwork is viewed from the side.
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Gil Bruvel: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Gil Bruvel.
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