Cardboard Companion

Jeremy Wolin thinks big. He enjoys creating monumental art, like this award-winning sculpture, because of the impact it has on the viewer. “There’s no escaping it,” says the 19-year-old artist. Jeremy is a freshman in the dual degree program at Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island. Jeremy hopes to make a living as an artist or an urban planner someday.

When did you first get serious about art?

I’ve always had a passion for making art, but I got serious in ninth grade, when I started attending a magnet school for the arts. Our teachers were working artists and exposed us to what is possible.

What made you decide to sculpt a larger-than-life figure?

I chose to make a 10-foot-tall, seated human figure for visual impact. I wanted my piece to take up so much space that it would practically consume the viewer.

What materials did you use and why?

I used cut-up cardboard boxes. The material was flat and light, perfect for a project this big. It also felt good that I was making art out of recycled materials.

How did you create your piece?

I started by sketching the figure. Then I made a small, three-dimensional model using stiff card stock. I multiplied the measurements of each shape by 20 to create the shapes on the huge scale that I wanted. Then I started assembling with hot glue. Finally, I covered the seams with white duct tape to secure them and to make the edges cleaner.

What challenges did you encounter?

The math was difficult because none of the angles were exactly square. One wrong calculation could throw a whole section off. It took me nearly three months, working three hours a day, four days a week, to work out the details and complete this piece.

What did you want viewers to take away from this sculpture?

My hope is that, by looking at a monumental figure created by a human-sized person, viewers will realize that even if a person is small, he or she can have a big impact.

What advice do you have for aspiring artists like yourself?

Go to museums and galleries to see the range of possibilities in art. Challenge yourself to go beyond drawing and painting and try new media, like film, photography, or printmaking. Trying sculpture showed me I could do a lot more than I realized. It also gave me the confidence to try new things.