COLLEN HAMMON-HOGAN'S FINE ART SCULPTURE
Collen Hammon-Hogan's sculptures represent hybrid mythological creatures influenced by the stylisms of graffiti murals and comic book art. His collection of curious creatures begin with archetypes from religious stories, but take shape from his personal examinations of comparative mythology. With characters like, "Jaguar Baby", adornments translate figurines from heavy religious archetypes into universal vessels and imagined totems. Mixing symbols from pop culture, he takes liberty fashioning them with today's trophies; "Batman's utility belt" readies the Egyptian falcon god, Horus, for urban battles and the sun god, Ra, fancies a big gold bling medallion.
Hammon-Hogan reaches a physicality in his works through bronze, clay and vinyl where his hand can be felt in every impression. The story of the materials are imbued with the strength and ambiguity of his characters.They are telling Hammon-Hogan's stories with a rawness and warmth where their flesh marries the spiritual with the slightly humourful. His own style is inspired mainly by the late Polish-American artist Stanislov Szukalski, the bronze craftsmen who blew life into eccentric figures active in their surreal mise en scenes. Hammon-Hogan also studied under Al Farrow whose works emulate relics with contemporary iconography.
Graffiti's influence on Hammon-Hogan's work is not just a fascination in line and color, but in context it is a bi-product from a society that functions independently from civilization. This culture's markings in public places are telling the stories outside a given society with their own codes, by their own rules. Hammon-Hogan's work overlaps their meanings and stories to illustrate that what human beings have in common are myths. According to the world renowned scholar Joseph Campbell, "myths are stories in search of truths". Hammon-Hogan's figurines have ubiquitous titles like "Influence" and "Knowledge" signifying their broad embodiments of human nature. He is currently developing a designer vinyl toy series of his mythological creatures working in more exaggerated pop scales and colors.
Hammon-Hogan earned a BA from Academy of Fine Art University and studied in Florence, at the NY SACI (Student Art Center International). His career spans over 4 years exhibiting and selling works at the Marin Arts Festival, and Academy of Art Spring Show. He works professionally as a private drawing instructor. Hammon-Hogan was born 1980, and the Hammon-Hogan family has settled in San Francisco's Excelsior District for over 100 years.
Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth 1988
If you are interested in purchasing or renting any of the work contact Collen Hammon-Hogan @ 415-971-7617. Or you can contact Collen by e-mail at nelloctheartist@gmail.com. Thank you.
All sculptures and images are Copyright Collen Hammon-Hogan 2008
