Brooklyn Artist Robin Antar receives special recognition

June 5, 2007 -- Artist ROBIN ANTAR of BROOKLYN, NEW YORK has received an Award of Excellence and a Special Recognition Merit Award for artwork in the "9th Annual Collage, Digital & Mixed Media International Juried Online Art Exhibition” hosted by http://www.upstreampeoplegallery.com/.This international exhibition received over 300 entries from around the world and 59 artists were selected by the juror Larry Bradshaw, Professor of Art at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.Professor Bradshaw states this about this specially recognized work:“Robin Antar of Brooklyn, NY is a super realist sculptress. Her attention to accuracy and detail is phenomenal especially seen in her limestone carving of a denim jacket appropriately titled “Jacket”. The folds, the buttons, the pockets and cuffs are superbly carved out. Another strong work is “Jeans” which shows a pair of jeans as if hanging from something. It’s amazing to see the accuracy of the zipper and even the lettering on the tags are very convincing.”The exhibition will be on display online during June, 2007 at http://www.upstreampeoplegallery.com/ and continue for 12 months, closing May 31, 2008.Further information about the artist:"Brooklyn-based sculptor Robin Antar replicates meticulously to scale everyday objects (shoes, clothing and candy) in carved stone. The result is a staggering and challenging trompe l'oeil for the viewer: is it a sculpture or is it the real thing?
Her works include a Skechers’ logger boot, a pair of Diesel jeans, a bag of Milano cookies, a bottle of Chateau Haut-Brion, and a bag of M & M’s, and much more. They are among the many icons of American culture that comprise the unique works of NY artist Robin Antar, recently named in the Best of American Sculptors 2007.
This mother of three sculpts visual duplications of the products of our culture in her studio, “freezing” the objects in time.

Antar’s works have appeared in exhibitions at museums, galleries, corporate offices and universities, ranging from the City Museum in St. Louis, to the Nabisco Corporation Gallery, to New York University. She recently appeared on HGTV’s That’s Clever, where she transformed a block of stone into a life-like boot. She sells her original pieces for upwards of $25,000.
“I record markings and symbols that reflect an object’s life and use, including their wear and tear in the form of creases, folds, dents and crevices,” said Antar, a graduate of the School of Visual Arts. “Most of the carvings are done in life scale and are intended to defy the viewer to discern the sculpture from the original object.”
Indeed, her artwork is amazingly lifelike. An Italian shoe shows the ever-so-slight signs of wear, and a plate of cookies, stacked just so, forces an observer to look twice before considering whether to swipe one. At a recent exhibit, her artwork had to be roped off because many people felt the urge to touch them.
She can spend anywhere from three to six months on a piece. To create a boot, for example, Antar cut lines and made deep scratches in the stone to mimic the sole. She tinted it with a thin coat of black, letting the grains of the stone show through. She then applied a thicker coat on the sole, creating the look of rubber.
Sculpting since she was 14 and a student at Lincoln High School in Brooklyn, Antar typically works at night – after her husband and children are asleep. In contrast to the order of her home and the gallery-like quality of her living room where she rotates her favorite pieces, her studio houses 20,000 pounds of stone (which spills over into her garage), works in progress (at present a bottle of Heinz ketchup), and the unusual tools of her trade (including heavy drills that seem far too bulky for the slight Antar to lift, much less sculpt with).
She sculpts both objects that catch her fancy and commissioned pieces that can range from one’s favorite pair of clothes to a family heirloom (e.g. a tallis, or Jewish prayer cloth). Her work can be found in many homes and private collections, including that of U.S. Senator Charles Schumer.
“The work is physically demanding and the fine detail requires an immense amount of focus and time,” said Antar, who has also developed a clientele for another aspect of her work, Judaic ceremonial artwork. “The money and the recognition are nice, but you do this for love.”
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Recently Antar created a line of Wine Knots, sculptures that hold bottles of wine and also stand alone as art. This summer Ms. Antar can be found at sculpting camp in Marble, CO, where she’ll transform 1,000 pounds of red travertine marble into a lifelike bottle of Heinz Ketchup.
Ms. Antar’s work will be on view at the Blue Hill Cultural Center, Pearl River, NY, as part of the “Made in the USA” exhibition, JUNE 12-NOV 30, 2007. For additional information, visit her website at http://www.rantar.com/. (Interviews, photos & demos available by contacting Vicki Garfinkel, A picture and more information about this work can be downloaded athttp://tinyurl.com/325ooohttp://tinyurl.com/2tjzzsUpstream People Gallery Team5607 Howard StreetOmaha, NE 68106-1257shows@upstreampeoplegallery.comMedia Contact: Vicki Garfinkel, vickig@eclipse.net