Dutch visual artist Diet Wiegman takes the phrase ‘one man’s trash is another man’s gold’ to a whole new level with his astounding shadow sculptures. Born in the Netherlands, Wiegman began experimenting with shadow art in the 1980s. He uses garbage, glass, and various other kinds of debris to create abstract sculptures that, under the right lighting, produce astonishingly detailed shadow images.
Courtesy of Diet Wiegman
Wiegman’s shadow pictures range from Michaelangelo’s David titled: David Deformed to a Michael Jackson Tribute titled: Shadow Dancing. Though shadow sculptures are not the only medium that Wiegman has worked with in his 50 years of being an artist, shadow manipulation is what he is most famous for. In 2009 Wiegman was voted “The Most Brilliant Artist of the Netherlands.” With his work, Wiegman strives to create “ideal beauty” out of “garbage.” His work with shadows was featured in Mike Redman’s documentary Anagram.
Courtesy of Diet Wiegman
Redman commented, “Diet Wiegman’s work always fascinated me. Through his art, he invites the viewer to look at so-called ordinary objects and situations in a different way, which makes them unique. For example, he constructed a crate with rubbish in it, which, when lit in a special way, resulted in producing a perfect shadow of the ‘David’ by Michelangelo on the wall.”
Wiegman’s manipulation of light and sculpture fuses reality with illusion to create a truly interesting work of art. More of Wiegman’s work can be viewed on his personal blog deitwiegman.tumblr.com.
Courtesy of Diet Wiegman