Home Is Where the Art Is

By Duane Hanson’s standards, nothing was as real as home. And no other place could nourish his sculpting creativity.

Fascinated with the human body, sculptor Duane Hanson spent nearly all of his artistic talents in creating sculptures that featured human beings. Cast using real-life people, Hanson’s pieces were always the right size and shape, their skin tones and other flares made perfect by Hanson’s near fanaticism of perfection. While he spent some time in New York, he quickly realized his need of Florida’s sun was more powerful than any lure that a more artistic surrounding could offset. For his realization and action, all should be grateful.

Case in point: 1988’s “Traveler.” No, it wasn’t just another one of Hanson’s sculptures. None of his pieces can be counted as simply “another Hanson piece.” They’re all remarkable, not only in the realism and attention shown to the sculpted person, but in the sculpted subject’s surroundings, the setting that sets the stage of the piece. For Hanson, creating a perfect copy of a real person wasn’t enough. Putting the hairs in place, the expressions just right, the jewelry to match was nice, but it wasn’t everything. In order for his sculptures to be complete, life-sized faux-people, Hanson created a world in which each character would live. For “Traveler,” the world consisted of luggage strewn about. And instead of the luggage being wasted added stuff in the sculpture, the “Traveler” uses the luggage to his advantage, as a kind of makeshift couch to support his weight as he sleeps in the airport.

The same marvelous detail is found in nearly every sculpture Hanson created. “Young Shopper” features a rotund lady holding huge shopping bags, bursting with items; the “Flea Market Vendor” sits reading a magazine, surrounded by her wares she sough to sell; and “Chinese Student” rests on the floor looking exhausted, holding what appears to be a protest sign in Chinese. And all of the detail goes toward the same end—creating a sculpted persona that is realistic, not only visually, but emotionally. What these sculpted people feel, viewers feel. The lives they live are lived by viewers. They’re not glamorous or sexy. They’re ordinary, found in the pits of South Florida and countless other regular places.

Which brings viewers back to Hanson’s love of Florida, his need of Florida. Could he have produced this work outside of his beloved South Florida? Would his characters, the people who posed for his sculptures and provided his body casts, have looked the same? Or would his talents have been modified, skewed, and misused? And what of his tastes? Living in a stylish, trendy environment, would his models have worn Ralph Lauren and Chanel? Would there ever have been a “Traveler” with his Hawaiian shirt spread open, his sunburned chest revealed to all passersby? Possibly not.

That’s not to say people shouldn’t move, shouldn’t find a new place to call home. It’s just that Hanson didn’t, and he did quite well for himself in the world of art. His pieces were meticulously sculpted, and he was respected both in his home state of Florida and the broader art community. Rather, the point of Hanson’s success is that people should be where they’re most comfortable. If the suburbs don’t feel right, move on. If the country is too out of the way, get in the city. Because whether creating an artistic masterpiece or being used to cast a mold for a sculpture, every person has to be happy with his or her surroundings to do it well.

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