Photo Credit: David Dietrich

Artist

Bob Trotman (Primary)

Title

Skin Deep

Date

2000

Century

21st century

Medium & Support

Tempera, wax, and wood

Dimensions

Overall: 25 x 22 x 21 in.

Object Type

Sculpture and Installations

Credit Line

Museum purchase with funds provided by Hedy Fischer & Randy Shull, Marc Grainer, and Sonia & Isaac Luski

Accession Number

2002.18.32

Copyright

In Copyright
© Bob Trotman

Larger than life, this ponytailed head and shoulders of an anonymous woman, carved from a single block of wood, embodies the self-examination performed by many for signs of blemishes, aging, and other imperfections. Trotman’s realistic figures are responses to a society obsessed with money and success, offering a critique of capitalism, privilege, and societal expectations. By working in wood, Trotman turns inherent faults in the material into impactful elements of his creative process. In Skin Deep these qualities—knots, grain, checks, whorls—become stand-ins for the typical imperfections that occupy one’s vanity.

Exhibition Title: Asheville Art Museum: An Introduction to the Collection
Label Date: 2021
Type: Catalogue Entry
Written by: Hilary Schroeder

• carvers
• figure works