ALL: Master Collection List
Nationality
Scottish
Artist Dates
b. 1941
Preview
Date of Work
1997
Medium
Mixed media
Signature
Bottom left and back
Height
3 1/2"
Width
7 1/4 in.
Depth
2
Collection/Provenance
Images are provided for educational purposes only and may not be reproduced for commercial use. Images may be protected by artist copyright. A credit line is required to be used for any public non-commercial educational purpose. The credit line must include, “Image courtesy of the University of North Dakota.”
Status
Stored: S2C
Location
UND Art Collections Repository
Artist Bio
Will Maclean is a Scottish artist that creates assemblage pieces out of found objects. Maclean was born in Inverness, Scotland into a family of fishermen. He studied at Gray's School of Art, Aberdeen, from 1961 to 1967. In the 1970s, Maclean was commissioned by the Scottish International Education Trust to make a detailed study of the declining Scottish ring net fishing industry. This experience heavily influenced the artist's work. Since this period in his career, Maclean has made assemblages using found objects from shorelines and beaches. The artist's work is inspired by historical, literary and mythological aspects of Scottish seafaring history.
Additional Information
A blue mixed media piece showing a bird with a human-like face. This piece is one of Will Maclean's iconic "box constructions." These pieces often show scenes from folklore and history. In this piece, Sweeney refers to the Irish myth of "mad Sweeney" or King Suibhne. According to the folklore, Sweeney was cursed to wander the wilds as a bird.
Maclean's work deeply explores this narrative, using Sweeney as a metaphor for exile, displacement, and the raw Scottish/Irish maritime landscape.
Condition
Very good
Rights
Images are provided for educational purposes only and may not be reproduced for commercial use. Images may be protected by artist copyright. A credit line is required to be used for any public non-commercial educational purpose. The credit line must include, “Image courtesy of the University of North Dakota.”