Marco Cochrane
{{Short description|American sculptor (born 1962)}}
{{Infobox artist
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| name = Marco Cochrane
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| alt = Marco Cochrane, an American sculptor of large-scale nude women executed in welded steel, discusses his art and process at his Treasure Island studio in 2011.
| caption = Marco Cochrane (2011)
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| notable_works = The Bliss Project (trilogy)
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| website = {{url|marcocochranesculpture.net}}
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Marco Cochrane (born 1962) is an American sculptor born in Venice, Italy, best known for his large-scale steel sculptures of nude women.
Early and personal life
Cochrane was born in Venice to American artists and raised in Berkeley, California.{{cite news |url=http://abc7news.com/society/sculpture-raising-eyebrows-in-san-leandro/1474202/ |title=Sculpture of nude woman raising eyebrows in San Leandro |author=Bloom, Jonathan |date=18 August 2016 |work=ABC 7 News |accessdate=21 February 2018}} When he was seven years old, a friend, then aged nine, was abducted and raped; Cochrane recalls "[m]y mom told me about it in way too much gory detail. It really shocked me," adding he was also surprised when "nobody did anything — and nobody ever talked about it again" and wondered "if he had realized she was a person, he wouldn't have done it."{{cite news |url=https://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/bliss-dance-artist-marco-cochrane-reminds-viewers-to-see-humanity-within/ |title='Bliss Dance' artist Marco Cochrane reminds viewers to see humanity within |author=Cling, Carol |date=3 April 2016 |newspaper=Las Vegas Review-Journal |accessdate=21 February 2018}}
''The Bliss Project''
{{quote |text=What I see missing in the world is an appreciation and respect for feminine energy and power that results when women are free and safe. It seems obvious to me that feminine energy is being suppressed and that this must change. If we are to find real, lasting solutions to the problems facing humanity, men and women must be able to work together as equals. Bliss Dance is intended to focus attention on this issue. |author=Marco Cochrane |source=Feb 2016 press release announcing installation of Bliss Dance at The Park{{cite press release |url=http://newsroom.mgmresorts.com/the-park-vegas/latest-news/artist-marco-cochranes-iconic-bliss-dance-sculpture-finds-new-home-at-the-park-on-las-vegas-strip.htm |title=Artist Marco Cochrane's Iconic Bliss Dance Sculpture Finds New Home at The Park on Las Vegas Strip |date=24 February 2016 |publisher=MGM Resorts |accessdate=21 February 2018}}}}
Bliss Dance, Truth is Beauty and R-Evolution collectively form The Bliss Project, a trilogy of steel sculptures. The model for each piece was the singer and dancer Deja Solis.{{cite news|url=http://www.montereycountyweekly.com/archives/2013/0912/article_bdbacd88-1b4a-11e3-9225-001a4bcf6878.html|title=Burning Man’s most memorable art piece was hatched here; its mandate is relevant everywhere|last=Anderson|first=Mark C.|date=September 12, 2013|work=Monterey County Weekly|accessdate=7 May 2014}} Cochrane met Solis in 2006 and asked her to model for a work in progress. During their fifth collaboration, Solis advanced the idea for the pose that would be sculpted as Bliss Dance.
A three-stage process was used to create each final piece:
- Cochrane sculpts Solis in clay as she holds the pose, and then casts a {{frac|3|4}}-scale plaster model from the clay
- Cochrane sculpts an intermediate clay model enlarged by 3× over the plaster model using a pantograph
- Cochrane and volunteers weld a final steel model enlarged by 3× over the intermediate clay using a pantograph
The finished sculptures use steel rod and tubing connected by steel balls for the structure, finished with a stainless steel mesh skin lit by LEDs.{{cite web |url=http://www.marcocochranesculpture.net/crew |title=Bliss Project Team & Construction Method |website=marcocochranesculpture.net |accessdate=21 February 2018}}
The first piece, entitled Bliss Dance (2010), reaches {{convert|40|ft}} in height and, after being introduced at Burning Man,{{cite news|url=http://www.nbcbayarea.com/the-scene/events/Burning-Man-Metropolis-For-the-Ladies-102084568.html|title=Burning Man Metropolis: For the Ladies|last=Keppel|first=Josh|date=September 12, 2010|work=NBC Bay Area|accessdate=7 May 2014}}{{cite news|url=http://www.cnet.com/news/oops-facebook-mistakenly-censors-burning-man-art/|title=Oops! Facebook mistakenly censors Burning Man art|last=Mills|first=Elinor|date=September 15, 2010|work=CNET|accessdate=7 May 2014}} was given a location on San Francisco's Treasure Island,{{cite news|url=http://sfpublicpress.org/news/2011-06/bliss-dance|title=‘Bliss’ sculpture, a Burning Man icon, returns to Treasure Island birthplace|last=Jensen|first=Monica|date=June 2011|work=San Francisco Public Press|accessdate=7 May 2014}} where it remained until May 18, 2015.{{cite news|url=http://www.sfbg.com/pixel_vision/2011/05/27/bliss-dance-grooves-treasure-island|title=Bliss Dance grooves on Treasure Island|last=Jonesq|first=Steven T.|date=May 27, 2011|work=San Francisco Bay Guardian|accessdate=7 May 2014}}{{cite web |url=http://sfist.com/2015/05/07/giant_treasure_island_burning_man_s.php |title=40-Foot Burning Man Sculpture Getting Removed From Treasure Island |author=Pershan, Caleb |date=7 May 2015 |publisher=sfist |accessdate=21 February 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171106001051/http://sfist.com/2015/05/07/giant_treasure_island_burning_man_s.php |archive-date=6 November 2017 |url-status=dead }} Bliss Dance later moved permanently to The Park, an entertainment venue near T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip, which opened on April 4, 2016. It weighs more than {{convert|7500|lb}}.{{cite news|url=https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Burning-Man-statue-graces-the-Las-Vegas-Strip-6873671.php |title=Burning Man statue graces the Las Vegas Strip |author=Guerrero, Susana |date=March 6, 2016|work=San Francisco Chronicle|accessdate=7 May 2016}}
Truth is Beauty (2013) which rises to {{convert|55|ft}} and weighs {{convert|13000|lb}}, was first shown at Burning Man in 2013.{{cite news|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tamsin-smith/truth-is-beauty_b_3888204.html|title=From Her to Eternity: A Playa Portrait|last=Smith|first=Tamsin|date=September 9, 2013|work=The Huffington Post|accessdate=7 May 2014}}{{cite news|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/pictures/burning-man-2013-the-scene-20130905/truth-is-beauty-0500833|title=Burning Man 2013: The Scene Pictures - Truth Is Beauty|last=London|first=Scott|date=May 2013|work=Rolling Stone|accessdate=7 May 2014}} A smaller scale piece by Cochrane will be showcased at the Renwick Gallery. {{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/23/arts/design/burning-man-art-renwick-gallery.html|title=Will the Spirit of Burning Man Art Survive in Museums?|work=The New York Times
|accessdate=28 March 2018}} It was a response to the rape and abduction of a childhood friend,{{cite news |url=https://www.sfgate.com/art/article/Naked-Truth-towers-over-East-Bay-campus-9973136.php |title=Naked 'Truth' towers over East Bay campus |author=Whiting, Sam |date=15 October 2016 |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |accessdate=21 February 2018}} and moved to a permanent location at the San Leandro Tech Campus in the fall of 2016, where it is visible from the San Leandro BART station. The piece was chosen by developer Westlake Urban to fulfill the city's requirement to spend one percent of the project budget on art.{{cite web |url=https://blog.sfgate.com/stew/2015/07/22/naked-burning-man-sculpture-sparks-controversy-in-san-leandro/ |title=Naked Burning Man sculpture sparks controversy in San Leandro |author=Graff, Amy |date=22 July 2015 |website=The Stew [blog] |publisher=SFGate |accessdate=21 February 2018}}{{cite news |url=https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/San-Leandro-Truth-is-Beauty-sculpture-nude-9145455.php#photo-6655651 |title=Controversy around 55-foot-tall nude woman sculpture in San Leandro continues |author=Graff, Amy |date=16 August 2016 |newspaper=San Francisco Chronicle |accessdate=21 February 2018}}
R-Evolution (2015), the third and final sculpture in The Bliss Project series, debuted at Burning Man in 2015 and has not yet found a permanent home. In 2019, the Union Square Business Improvement District studied the possibility of bringing R-Evolution to Hallidie Plaza, the entrance to {{stn|Powell Street}}.{{cite web |url=https://www.unionsquarefoundation.org/hallidieplaza |title=Hallidie Plaza |publisher=Union Square Foundation |accessdate=10 January 2020}}{{cite report |url=https://www.visitunionsquaresf.com/sites/default/files/_/PDFs/Agenda/USBID%20Executive%20Committee%20Agenda%20-%20Oct19-final2.pdf |title=Union Square Business Improvement District Executive Committee Meeting |date=October 24, 2019 |publisher=Union Square Business Improvement District |accessdate=10 January 2020}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website}}
- {{vimeo |id=119893153 |title=Marco Cochrane Artist Profile}}
=''Bliss Dance''=
- [http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/bliss-dance Bliss Dance at Atlas Obscura]
- {{cite web |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/2013630200/ |title="Bliss Dance" sculpture created by artist Marco Cochrane, San Francisco, California |author=Highsmith, Carol M. |date=2012 |publisher=Library of Congress |accessdate=21 February 2018}}
- {{cite magazine |url=https://www.wired.com/video/2011/11/sculptor-uses-iphone-to-control-40-foot-woman/ |title=Sculptor Uses iPhone to Control 40-Foot Woman |date=13 November 2011 |magazine=Wired |accessdate=21 February 2018}}
=''Truth is Beauty''=
- {{cite web |url=https://mymodernmet.com/marco-cochrane-truth-in-beauty/ |title=Stunning Shots of the Most Gorgeous Sculpture at Burning Man |author=Yoo, Alice |date=10 September 2013 |website=My Modern Met |accessdate=21 February 2018}}
- {{cite web |url=http://sl-tc.com/truth-is-beauty/ |title=Truth is Beauty |website=San Leandro Tech Campus |publisher=Westlake Urban |accessdate=22 February 2018}}
- {{vimeo|id=62843802 |title=The Bliss Project: Truth is Beauty}}
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Category:20th-century American sculptors