Ron Mueck
Ron Mueck was born in 1958 in Melbourne to German parents. Mueck’s toy-maker parents influenced his career path into puppeteering and model making for film and television and fostered the meticulous attention to detail and craftsmanship that is a hallmark of his work.
Mueck is one of the foremost proponents of hyperrealist sculpture in Australia and globally. Handmade with silicon, resin and acrylic, his sculptures incorporate meticulous details, contributing to their arresting hyperreal presence. Mueck plays with scale, often using slightly miniature or oversized forms, enhancing their enigmatic quality and fostering a voyeuristic curiosity in the audience. His figurative sculptures capture all stages of life; pregnancy, birth, death and communicates poignant emotions of the human experience in a visceral way.
In 1997, Mueck’s work Dead dad was included in the landmark exhibition Sensation at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. In 2001 he represented Australia at the 49th Venice Biennale. Between 2000 and 2002, Mueck was the 14th artist in residence at the National Gallery in London. Mueck has held major solo exhibitions at the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (2010) and Thaddeus Ropac, London (2021). His work is held in public collections such as the Tate, London, and National Gallery of Victoria. Mueck lives and works in London.
Born in 1958 in Melbourne to German parents, Ron Mueck currently resides in the UK. Mueck’s parents were toy makers which influenced his career path into puppeteering and model making for film and television. This fostered his meticulous attention to detail and craftsmanship, making him one of the most identifiable and prominent contemporary sculptors working today.
Mueck is one of the foremost proponents of hyperrealist sculpture in Australia and globally. Handmade with silicon, resin and acrylic, his sculptures incorporate meticulous details, contributing to their arresting hyperreal presence. Mueck plays with scale, often using slightly miniature or oversized forms, enhancing their enigmatic quality and fostering a voyeuristic curiosity in the audience. His figurative sculptures capture all stages of life; pregnancy, birth, death and communicates poignant emotions of the human experience in a visceral way.
His sculpture Dead Dad (1996-97), an expression of the artist coming to terms with the death of his father, propelled his career to international acclaim. This scaled-down naked figure lying with his palms up and it caught the eye of art collector Charles Saatchi, who went on to represent Mueck. In 2000-2002, Mueck was the 14th artist in residence at the National Gallery in London. It was Mueck’s solo exhibition at the NGV in 2010 that was his most comprehensive to date and had record attendance to a show by an Australian artist. In 2001, he exhibited at the 49th Venice Biennale with the compelling sculpture of a gigantic crouching child, Untitled (Boy) 1999. His works are held in significant public collections such as the Tate, London, and National Gallery of Victoria.
