Plaster Clay Figure

Using plaster and clay, Paul McCarthy represents the figure of a naked woman, placed on a wooden workshop table in the middle of the tools that made it. This decomposed mannequin, completely exhibited and whose face is not identifiable, violently denounces the cliché of the woman-object. A female model with spread legs and amputated limbs, the Plaster Clay Figure sculpture functions as a critique against a society marked by sexist oppression.

Paul McCarthy takes a radical and ironic look at contemporary western society. This sculpture is part of a series of works, from the 2000s, which reflects his disturbing questions about sexuality. Using masks that blur any notion of identity or gender, these grotesque works denounce sexual harassment and media dictatorship.

Paul McCarthy's Plaster Clay Figure was first shown by the Pinault Collection during the 2006 Post-Pop exhibition at Palazzo Grassi.