Recognized as a great American sculptor of the twentieth century, George Segal used plaster and found objects to create innovative works depicting his immediate surroundings while invoking scenes which resonate universally. Working out of an old chicken coop as his studio on the family farm in New Jersey, Segal produced scenes witnessed throughout his life in his native New York City and later in suburban New Jersey, capturing the lives of ordinary people in daily activities.
Feeling trapped stylistically in the medium of paint, S... Read more
Recognized as a great American sculptor of the twentieth century, George Segal used plaster and found objects to create innovative works depicting his immediate surroundings while invoking scenes which resonate universally. Working out of an old chicken coop as his studio on the family farm in New Jersey, Segal produced scenes witnessed throughout his life in his native New York City and later in suburban New Jersey, capturing the lives of ordinary people in daily activities.
Feeling trapped stylistically in the medium of paint, Segal transitioned into creating three-dimensional figures and objects. He developed his ideas mentally, never through sketches. After experimenting with roughly assembled proto-plaster figures and accumulating objects used as props for his pieces, he developed his technique in several stages and began producing everyday scenes in larger than life-size sculptural installations and wall reliefs. With his focus on the human form, Segal created ghost-like plaster figures in such works as Three People on Four Benches; color sculptural reliefs like Girl Sitting on Bed with Bedpost; and bronze statues such as Chance Meeting, bringing to life a tableau of human activity.
