True to Life

Veristic Sculpture and the Engineering of Illusion

1 October 2014 to 1 March 2015

The Liebieghaus Skulpturensammlung dedicated a major special exhibition to the fascinating tradition of (hyper)realistic sculpture. “True to Life. Veristic Sculpture and the Engineering of Illusion” offered mesmerizing insights into the endeavors undertaken by artists of different stylistic epochs throughout more than four thousand years that were aimed at sculptural representations of man which are as faithful as possible. The confrontation of fifty-two works from different centuries conveyed a unique and comprehensive impression of this art-historical phenomenon.

The visitor came upon extraordinarily lifelike sculptures of an imposing, irritating and at the same time shocking character. The show put light on a variety of techniques for ensuring illusionistic effects such as the use of real hair, glass eyes, and lavish painting.

Curator Dr. Stefan Roller (Liebieghaus Skulpturensammlung)
Sponsored by Kulturfonds Frankfurt RheinMain
With additional support from Hessische Kulturstiftung
Media partner Verkehrsgesellschaft Frankfurt am Main
Culture partner hr2-kultur