Paula 76

The girl’s head, “Paula”, exhibited in “Blickachsen 11” in Kronberg, is closely related to the work “Isabella”, on display in Bad Homburg. Her closed eyes and block-like form make “Paula” seem at peace with herself, turned away from the outside world. Vertical lines mark the whole of her delicate face, pointing up the manufactured nature of the sculpture, which is constructed out of individual cast bronze pieces. The oversized head, on its massive square pedestal, faces the viewer approximately at eye level, gently confronting him with a reclusive air, which is directed inwards without hiding from view. The works of the world famous artist Jaume Plensa invariably create an exchange or direct interaction between sculpture and viewer, either by virtue of their physical accessibility, as in his works “Body of Knowledge”, on permanent display in the Campus Westend of Frankfurt university, or through the unmediated effect their physical presence has on their opposite number. This kind of interaction reaches beyond cultures and language; it merely demands a willingness to be open to the other.