Duane Elwood Hanson Research Paper

Duane Elwood Hanson was an American figurative sculptor who was known for his trompe l’oeil style sculptures. He was born on January 17, 1925 in Alexandria, Minnesota and died on January 6, 1996. Hanson attended Macalester College, where he obtained his bachelor’s degree in 1946. From there, Hanson furthered his education by studying at the University of Minnesota, eventually obtaining his M.F.A in sculpture at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1951. He spent a few years teaching in Germany, where he met George Grygo, a German artist who worked with fiberglass and polyester. Hanson took an interest in Grygo’s methods of creating art, and began to make his own sculptures out these same materials (Wainwright). He began making his life-sized sculptures in the late 1960’s, and first gained recognition for his tableaux figures, which would often represent

Examples include his works, Tourists II (Figure 3) and Security Guard (Figure 4).

Hanson was also known for having immense detail in his art, this was because he used real people as models for his sculptures and he would replicate even the most miniscule details about them, including varicose veins and mosquito bites. After he completed the final details, he added clothes and accessories to the sculptures.
His work usually featured citizens in the lower classes of society. He made figures of people among the ranks of housewives, janitors, and repairmen (Duane Hanson). His piece, Housewife (Homemaker) (Figure 5), shows a woman lounging in a chair while reading a magazine and smoking a cigarette.
Overall, Duane Hanson proved himself a master at trompe l’oeil style art. The amount of time and effort that is necessary to achieve the level of perfection found in his sculptures is impressive and