Macro: Giant hyperrealistic sculptures of everyday objects by Rómulo Celdrán

When you walk around your home, perhaps noticing things out of the corner of your eye or perhaps not at all – take a moment to consider the astonishing giant sculptures of everyday objects by Spanish artist Rómulo Celdrán. Think hyperrealistic hot water bottles, clothing pegs and bottle caps, but on an exaggerated, larger-than-life scale.

Under the name of Macro, the series of artworks aim to explore the extensive world of objects that interest Celdrán for different reasons, be they aesthetic (or anti-aesthetic), plastic, functional or even emotional. They're objects that are often forgotten and taken for granted, but actually play a very important role in our human lives.

What would we do without the humble clothes peg? How would clothes stay on the line if it weren't for this helpful little tool? Or what about freshly opened packets of food? How would they stay clamped shut and preserved? And how would we warm our beds on a cold winter's night if we didn't have access to the humble water bottle? Celdrán gives the objects new dimensions, strengthening their presence and inviting us to explore them, discovering hidden spaces and unnoticed nooks.

The sculptures almost place us before a giant world, as though we had suddenly been zapped by a laser and shrunk to the size of a walnut, walking through a reality made up of objects whose unsuitable size renders them functionally useless, existing on a scale that is no longer human. As Celdrán explains: "I believe there is something magic in the world of scales. There is a kind of emotional memory that invites us to feel the relationship with the Macro objects as if it were a game.

"As children, we view the world on a much larger scale than other people. In order to satisfy that feeling of relationship with the external world, many brands of toys try to create a world on a child’s scale. They manufacture cars, kitchens, tools and other objects to scale for children. That memory of playing, of curiosity, of identification with what we apprehended remains somehow fixed in our memory.

"Discovery, surprise and, of course, irony, are aspects that I would like to see hovering around this series of works. Reality does not exist. And if what exists is the perception that we have of it, why not explore the underlying principles of that perception?”

Born in Spain in 1973, Celdrán enjoyed his first solo exhibition at the age of 16. His early introduction into the professional artistic world led him to consolidate his artistic training in a self-taught way. He has exhibited internationally, won numerous awards and his paintings and sculptures can be found in many public and private collections worldwide.

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