Installed at High Line, New York
Tony Matelli United States, b. 1971
Sleepwalker Male, 2014
painted bronze
170.2 x 109.2 x 66 cm
67 x 43 x 26 in
100 kg
67 x 43 x 26 in
100 kg
Copyright of Tony Matelli Studio
Further images
Nearly nude with arms outstretched, the true-to-life Sleepwalker is exemplary of Tony Matelli’s ethos as an artist and is one of his most iconic pieces to date. Made entirely of...
Nearly nude with arms outstretched, the true-to-life Sleepwalker is exemplary of Tony Matelli’s ethos as an artist and is one of his most iconic pieces to date. Made entirely of bronze, the sculpture is characterized by its hyperrealism, and straddles the boundaries of absurdity and humor, raising broader existential questions.
MARUANI MERCIER proposes to present the last available edition of this sculpture–one of two AP’s in existence–for the first edition of Paris+. This will mark the sculpture’s first ever appearance at an art fair, following several “controversial” appearances, including its debut at the at Davis Museum at Wellesley College in 2014, the group show ‘Unrealism’, presented by Larry Gagosian and Jeffrey Deitch in Miami, and at The High Line in New York as part of the group show entitled ‘Wanderlust’ in 2016.
This important work has been extensively profiled in over 96 countries, with over 5,000 media mentions across digital and print publications.
On the debut of Sleepwalker at The Davis Museum:
“This is not the first time that I’ve made a sculpture similar to this. I’ve made
a couple other sleepwalkers. One was a sculpture of a woman, and one was a
sculpture of a much younger man. When I was planning for this show, I knew that
I was going to do the ground floor, and I knew that I was going to do the top
floor. I thought it would be cool to do something outside also. Typically when
you think of outdoor sculpture, you think of big, blocky, kind-of-alien, modern
artwork that feels like a real exertion of machismo—like a real exertion of corporate
identity. I wanted to make something that felt really vulnerable outside
and felt very lost and fragile, because outdoor sculptures never ever do that.”
–Tony Matelli, Vice Magazine
MARUANI MERCIER proposes to present the last available edition of this sculpture–one of two AP’s in existence–for the first edition of Paris+. This will mark the sculpture’s first ever appearance at an art fair, following several “controversial” appearances, including its debut at the at Davis Museum at Wellesley College in 2014, the group show ‘Unrealism’, presented by Larry Gagosian and Jeffrey Deitch in Miami, and at The High Line in New York as part of the group show entitled ‘Wanderlust’ in 2016.
This important work has been extensively profiled in over 96 countries, with over 5,000 media mentions across digital and print publications.
On the debut of Sleepwalker at The Davis Museum:
“This is not the first time that I’ve made a sculpture similar to this. I’ve made
a couple other sleepwalkers. One was a sculpture of a woman, and one was a
sculpture of a much younger man. When I was planning for this show, I knew that
I was going to do the ground floor, and I knew that I was going to do the top
floor. I thought it would be cool to do something outside also. Typically when
you think of outdoor sculpture, you think of big, blocky, kind-of-alien, modern
artwork that feels like a real exertion of machismo—like a real exertion of corporate
identity. I wanted to make something that felt really vulnerable outside
and felt very lost and fragile, because outdoor sculptures never ever do that.”
–Tony Matelli, Vice Magazine