Emerging from a bronze base is a body of paint, slathered in thick chunks, growing into the surrounding space. Globs of brown paint evoke the aged textures of an old tree trunk, whilst the bright smears of greens, pinks and yellow evoke seasonal foliage. The thick impasto is shaped upwards and outwards with lively vigour. Reaching out from beneath the layers of paint is a slender arm of a 19th century bronze wood nymph statuette. The delicate details of the bronze disappear beneath the bold coats of oil and acrylic, the meticulous bronze sculpture turned into a grotesque mass of paint. The nymph, engulfed in swatches of paint, is moments before complete submersion, transforming into a tree herself. A uniquely narrative example, Nymphe des Bois is an enthralling example of Glenn Brown’s sculptural oeuvre.

Regarding his sculptures, Brown has previously said: “to me [sculptures] are very much the same thing as paintings and they have continued to inform each other. I don’t know whether I’d be making more abstracted paintings if I hadn’t made the sculptures…. The paintings and sculptures really inform each other - it’s a way of making a three-dimensional painting” (Glenn Brown cited in: Lynn MacRitchie, ‘Interview: Glenn Brown’, Art in America, 18 March 2009, online). Unlike his paintings, where the original works are translated into Brown’s unique painterly style, his sculptural works build a different kind of dynamic with the source material by painting directly onto the original. His use of paint, which in his paintings are characteristically flat, are rough and textural, creating an opposite quality from the smooth bronze surfaces. Bringing the intensity of Brown’s brushstrokes to life, the thickly rendered, gravity defying paint sculptures are a compelling aspect of his practice.

Belonging to the generation of artists that emerged from Goldsmiths in the early 1990s, Brown’s practice fuses historical styles and pictorial conventions through references and appropriation. As the artist once said in an interview, “even if I was sitting in a field painting flowers, Monet, Renoir or Fantin Latour would be influencing me. We trawl art history around with us whether we like it or not. There’s no escape - but it’s not really a prison” (Glenn Brown cited in: Sturart Jeffries, ‘Inside Dr Frankenstein’s studio: Glenn Brown on his macabre mashups’, The Guardian, 24 January 2018, online). First rising to fame for his mutant clones of canonical paintings, the artist has since then expanded his practice to include three dimensional works. Executed in 2011, Nymphe des Bois is a captivating example of Brown’s work with antique bronze sculptures, bringing appropriation to a different dimension through the physical incorporation of the statuette. By exposing the arm and foot of the original statue, Brown presents a collaboration between himself and the unnamed artist, breathing new life into a common 19th century reproduction bronze. One of Britain’s most revered contemporary artists, Brown’s fantastical vision continues to bring together the best of the past and present.