Ramon
López Ayats
“As a biologist, sculpture offers a medium to show animals at the peak of their vitality and expression.“
There are many ways of teaching natural history: illustrations, photographs, books, panels, infographics, reports, audiovisual materials, etc., but there is absolutely nothing like discovering how smalland fragile you are standing at the foot of a Deinotherium towering five metres above you, or comparing human evolution by hugging a Homo sapiens, or discovering the sweetness of a new-born dinosaur!
Ramón, you transform a fossil, a piece of bone, into an almost living animal. Where do you start?
Actually, if we’ve only got one piece of bone, it’s rather difficult. The more pieces we have the better. This is where the scientists, who I work for and with, do all their work. I come in when we’ve got a more or less clear idea of the individual we’re going to reconstruct. But it’s true we start with a skeleton.
Once we have the skeleton, we put on the tissue bundles. Muscle provides the most definition. The last layer of skin and hair require more deduction, since, except in cases where there is an exceptionally good state of preservation, such as quaternary animals found frozen in permafrost, we have no evidence of what they looked like.
Colouring is the last aspect we have to decide. Normally, a look at living relatives, at similar present-day fauna, helps. Also, knowing their ecological niche and behaviour helps us to choose the right posture.
Are you a biologist with a passion for sculpture or a sculptor with a passion for biology?
Officially, I have a degree in biological sciences from the University of Barcelona. You might say sculpture lets me investigate anatomy, experiment with the plasticity of tissues, and discover, get to know and recreate specimens that we only know as fossils.
Then would you perhaps say that you create art to serve science?
There’s obviously an artistic side to my sculptures. Aesthetics are important! But, as you say, they serve science. My aim is not to make beauty for beauty’s sake.
It’s more to contribute to scientific advancement in research and knowledge of biology, and to bring it to a wider audience. I’m also interested in the educational and awareness-raising aspects of the figures themselves, the captivating environment they create.
Are expression and movement essential to your figures?
Yes, absolutely, just like making music is not just about playing notes. For me, sculpture has to go beyond reproducing a static figure. It has to model motion. It has to manage to have an attitude, an expression that helps make the figure seem alive.
With hyper-realistic figures we can show animals at their peak of expression and vitality. You might say they give you a chance to approach them, even to touch them, in situations where it would be completely impossible to do that.
Apart from the knowledge of biology and the sculptural skills, there’s a more technical side – knowing materials and how to use them. I understand this is also important.
The modelling part is probably the part that requires the most craftsmanship. I work mainly with polyurethane foam structures and mould over them with plasticine. Then we make a silicone mould.
You could say the final part is where all the knowledge of different techniques and finishes comes in.
We mainly work with resins and silicones: Then we apply synthetic hair, either by embedding it (rooting it) or magnetizing it.
Another totally different technique we’ve been working with a lot recently is bronze. It involves a lot of casting, polishing, etc. When we finally have the piece, we have to paint it, which also requires a lot of craftsmanship and is where the figure really comes to life.
So, I understand there’s an important element of experimentation before you can master the whole technique?
I suppose so. We’ve been doing it for over 27 years. All these years we’ve been adding in new techniques and building our experience in a way. In any case, we love to keep trying new things and facing new challenges, like when we had to move the whole team to Geneva to help Miquel Barceló build stalactites on the UN dome.
That was a real challenge!
Keep the challenges coming!
I can assure you that your passion and perseverance will definitely help you to overcome them!
Ramon López
“As a biologist, sculpture offers a medium to show animals at the peak of their vitality and expression.“
Ramon
López Ayats
“As a biologist, sculpture offers a medium to show animals at the peak of their vitality and expression.“
There are many ways of teaching natural history: illustrations, photographs, books, panels, infographics, reports, audiovisual materials, etc., but there is absolutely nothing like discovering how smalland fragile you are standing at the foot of a Deinotherium towering five metres above you, or comparing human evolution by hugging a Homo sapiens, or discovering the sweetness of a new-born dinosaur!
Ramón, you transform a fossil, a piece of bone, into an almost living animal. Where do you start?
Actually, if we’ve only got one piece of bone, it’s rather difficult. The more pieces we have the better. This is where the scientists, who I work for and with, do all their work. I come in when we’ve got a more or less clear idea of the individual we’re going to reconstruct. But it’s true we start with a skeleton.
Once we have the skeleton, we put on the tissue bundles. Muscle provides the most definition. The last layer of skin and hair require more deduction, since, except in cases where there is an exceptionally good state of preservation, such as quaternary animals found frozen in permafrost, we have no evidence of what they looked like.
Colouring is the last aspect we have to decide. Normally, a look at living relatives, at similar present-day fauna, helps. Also, knowing their ecological niche and behaviour helps us to choose the right posture.
Are you a biologist with a passion for sculpture or a sculptor with a passion for biology?
Officially, I have a degree in biological sciences from the University of Barcelona. You might say sculpture lets me investigate anatomy, experiment with the plasticity of tissues, and discover, get to know and recreate specimens that we only know as fossils.
Then would you perhaps say that you create art to serve science?
There’s obviously an artistic side to my sculptures. Aesthetics are important! But, as you say, they serve science. My aim is not to make beauty for beauty’s sake.
It’s more to contribute to scientific advancement in research and knowledge of biology, and to bring it to a wider audience. I’m also interested in the educational and awareness-raising aspects of the figures themselves, the captivating environment they create.
Are expression and movement essential to your figures?
Yes, absolutely, just like making music is not just about playing notes. For me, sculpture has to go beyond reproducing a static figure. It has to model motion. It has to manage to have an attitude, an expression that helps make the figure seem alive.
With hyper-realistic figures we can show animals at their peak of expression and vitality. You might say they give you a chance to approach them, even to touch them, in situations where it would be completely impossible to do that.
Apart from the knowledge of biology and the sculptural skills, there’s a more technical side – knowing materials and how to use them. I understand this is also important.
The modelling part is probably the part that requires the most craftsmanship. I work mainly with polyurethane foam structures and mould over them with plasticine. Then we make a silicone mould.
You could say the final part is where all the knowledge of different techniques and finishes comes in.
We mainly work with resins and silicones: Then we apply synthetic hair, either by embedding it (rooting it) or magnetizing it.
Another totally different technique we’ve been working with a lot recently is bronze. It involves a lot of casting, polishing, etc. When we finally have the piece, we have to paint it, which also requires a lot of craftsmanship and is where the figure really comes to life.
So, I understand there’s an important element of experimentation before you can master the whole technique?
I suppose so. We’ve been doing it for over 27 years. All these years we’ve been adding in new techniques and building our experience in a way. In any case, we love to keep trying new things and facing new challenges, like when we had to move the whole team to Geneva to help Miquel Barceló build stalactites on the UN dome.
That was a real challenge!
Keep the challenges coming!
I can assure you that your passion and perseverance will definitely help you to overcome them!