Camera Man is typical of Mark Fredenburg’s sculptural oeuvre. While seemingly a humorous commentary on contemporary society’s increasingly narcissistic tendencies to pose in front of a lens, Camera Man has an additional reference, that of ancient archeology. Upon looking closely, the viewer can decipher temples and pyramids of the Mayans. Placed at ground level, the sculpture becomes an artifact as well as art. In this way, it affords insights into past cultures while making a statement on the vanity of present ones. Mark Fredenburg was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1955. He received his BA degree from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, in 1978. He won a full fellowship to the Vermont Studio Center, Johnson, in 2003 before receiving his MFA degree from Goddard College, Plainfield, Vermont, in 2007. Fredenburg’s technical skills allowed him the opportunity to work on projects with such important sculptors as Red Grooms, Magdalena Abakanowicz and Isaac Witkin, among others. His own work has been shown in exhibitions throughout the northeastern United States and his commissions are featured in the eastern and mid-western parts of the country. Today Fredenburg, who lives and works in Pennsylvania, continues to sculpt although he has added creative writing and cartooning to his repertoire. "As a young man, I was fascinated with making new objects…playing with them the same way as a boy brought to a piano. I’m blessed with an irrational ability to take sculpture shapes from the world’s oldest cultures and transform them. I get my best ideas in attempting to quantify the value of popular objects. I start with basic questions which often fool me but I find a way to smile. I am pleased to say Camera Man not only serves to delight but is a testimonial to memories worth keeping." - Mark Fredenburg | | 
Camera Man, 2003
granite
37" x 47" x 41"
Loan courtesy of the Artist |
