Jonathan Monaghan's 2015 marble sculpture with the appearance of soft fabric, installed in a outdoor sculpture biennial

Agnus Dei (After Zurbarán)

2015. Carrara marble, 3D printed gold-plated steel. 30 in x 21 in x 11 in
Agnus Dei (After Zurbarán) derives its form from a 1635 painting by Francisco de Zurbarán of a bound lamb. Rendered life-size in marble and with a luxurious leather-like skin, the piece conjures notions of confinement by technology and materialism. Fabricated using digital milling techniques, the work is a study in contrasts; between the soft and hard, the virtual and physical, and the past and future.

A large marble sculpture resembling a leather-like surface created using digital fabrication
View of contemporary marble sculpture resembling a soft surface created using digital fabrication

process

Agnus Dei (After Zurbarán) was carved from a solid block of marble using robotic milling techniques, and hand-finished by the artist at the foot of a quarry in Italy during the summer of 2015.

The artwork is carved from a solid block of marble using CNC milling machines
Showing the sculpture being hand-finished by the artist
Jonathan Monaghan's finished sculpture with 3D-printed gold ornamentation