Artist Shocks Public With Dark, Twisted Human Sculptures

By Syafiqah Omar, 23 Mar 2012

American street artist Mark Jenkins creates disconcerting, lifelike mannequin scupltures and installs them in public places, shocking many passers-by.

His sculptures are seen “jumping” off buildings and at awkward, hurtful positions, sparking calls to the ambulance or police.

"I like getting people to question their surroundings, what is real and what isn't. These days, people are so buried in their mobile phones and I just wanted to get them to look up,” says Jenkins.

As to his twisted and provocative work, Jenkins says that his sculptures are laced with dark humor and "often tend to be marginalized individuals, sometimes in lonely states, so it's poetic but also dark”.

"A lot of people identify with these characters that are neglected and melancholic, and they approach them to be helpful. My street art enables me to communicate with the rest of the world on a deeper level.”

Both Wunderkammern Gallery in Rome and Masagon Gallery in Osaka are hosting simultaneous exhibitions of Jenkins' work.

The Wunderkammern show runs until April 26th while the Masagon exhibit closes on March 31st.