Back to Artist

Pig's Head

Jesse Aaron
  • JAa - Pig's Head - Master Image

    Click on image to enlarge

    Photo: Stephen Pitkin/Pitkin Studio
c. 1972
Charred wood and cast resin
17.5 x 13.5 x 10.25 inches
Collection of
Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco museum purchase American Art Trust Fund and gift of the Souls Grown Deep Foundation
Description

Pig’s Head, created from a forked piece of wood, with its two resin eyes and two impressed nostrils, is a stylized portrait that minimally and masterfully captures the essential characteristics of the animal. This sculpture epitomizes Aaron’s belief that “God put the faces in the wood. Don’t bring me a piece of wood and then ask me to carve something out of it. ‘Cause I won’t. Don’t tell me what you want, it might not be there, you understand?” —Lauren Palmor