Many years ago, I have been drawn (like many of us, anyway) to Franz Kafka's iconic novella, "Metamorphosis," which tells the story of a man who wakes up one day to find himself transformed into a giant insect. You may not like Kafka as an adult - or perhaps you do, but the fact it was a task for us to read it for a school subject, and at the time I was already "into it" - for me, it was just "so cool". Edgy.

As a kid, that "cool" transformation materializes in your mind - for an adult, you immediately have a clear allegory; The phrase "work like an ant" is a colloquialism that implies working hard and tirelessly, and before his transformation into a giant insect, Gregor's work ethic is emphasized, as he wakes up early every morning and endures long, tiring days on the road to provide for his family.
(there are many other interpretations, too.)

For last two years, I've felt like that, too. I have been "abandoning" my passion for sculpture and all the work and time I put into this, into education, I didn't like my job and I didn't even know why I chose to do it, knowing it was just setting me back financially. Upon my graduation at the Academy of Arts, I decided to quit my job and go back to sculpting - full time.

I have created a "series" of sculptures made from plaster casts of tools (actually, parts of a sculpture). Each is a tool that has been transformed, distorted, and twisted into a new and unsettling form - unusable, it is de Saussure's sign of a tool - it may look like pliers, but it can't cut.

Just as Kafka's protagonist undergoes a radical transformation, these tools have been transformed from their original, functional forms into something strange and otherworldly. The plaster casts capture every detail and texture of the original tools, but their new forms challenge the viewer to see them in a different way. There is no meaning in carving or shaping them from clay; that would be a sculpture of pliers, but not their copy - copy of a copy.

There is a lot more work to do and many tools to cast, which will then be arranged into a bed.

Inspired by the image of Kafka's protagonist, Gregor, transforming into a bug, instead of myself - as a "protagonist" of my own narrative - being transformed, my place of rest is the one that changes.
The bed, which should be a place of rest and comfort, has become a symbol of the never-ending cycle of work and productivity that can consume us.

By elevating these everyday objects to the realm of art, I aim to challenge the viewer's perceptions of the objects around them and encourage them to see the beauty and complexity in even the most utilitarian tools. When seen from a small distance, they have many beautiful details that a clay mold can leave, revealing "decayed" appearance.

For more works and processes;
WEBSITE
https://magkip.wixsite.com/cabinetofc...
INSTAGRAM
@magdalenamod
https://www.instagram.com/magdalenamo...