I do not remember how I cam across Joseph Klibanksy’s work but I shall certainly be following him keenly from now on. I am always on the lookout for unusual, unique and interesting works of art. Klibansky delivers on all three counts. Below I shall discuss a number of his excellent works in the hope of bringing this new artist to your attention.
The Thinker, 2018
The Thinker is a 2018 piece, clearly echoing its Rodin namesake, made of polished bronze and spray paint. The scale of this work is most impressive, as you will see from the below work. Rodin’s Thinker is often used to portray the idea of philosophy, Klibansky’s work seems to add a spacial element to this. What does it mean? Does it mean anything? Probably not, but it is fun. I have not yet seen spray paint over bronze, especially not detailed polished bronze like this. And the fact someone has had the foresight to cast an astronaut in bronze is striking in itself.
Leap of Faith 2018
The faithful among you will recognise this piece mirrors a passage in the Gospel about Christ carrying His cross, (John 19:17-18). Klibansky has, perhaps bafflingly, transformed Christ into an astronaut for reasons beyond my own limited comprehension. I suppose this is supposed to signify the metaphorical cross we all bear? Who is to say. I still think outside of a subjective conversation about intrinsic artistic merit, I think this piece is pretty cool, if not a tad sacrilegious.
Happily Ever After 2019
This is from the more recent Klibansky exhibition and is made of polished bronze which was then chiselled more finely with what resembles a bone saw. Where to begin with this wonderful piece? The piece depicts a fattened croc wearing a party hat and tooting a party whistle. The scales are done to perfection for me. The little feet are detailed beautifully. The tail is astonishing to me in its length and detail. This is also such a fun piece that I could not help but share it with you.
Final reflections: does this mean anything? Probably not. Is it technically impressive? I think so. Is this good art? That is entirely up to you. I had a conversation with M about whether this constitutes ‘good art’ and we concluded that in truth there is no such thing as good art. Some art has political sway, some had religious implications and can inspire, but in the end art is only as good as you, the viewer, think it is. To this end, I hope these three Klibansky pieces have brought you some joy. I encourage you to delve further into his world as it is quite exciting.
You can see the Klibansky exhibition at the House of Fine Art in Los Angeles.