Sculptures for Home and Garden

Many home and garden design enthusiasts spend a great amount of time and effort thinking about and investing in sculptures. Sculptures are an incredibly varied and diverse art form that stem from ancient times, when they were used for religious and state architecture. That practice continues today, as sculptures harken back to previous civilizations and imbue a home or garden with the power of nostalgia and antiquity. Many homeowners look for sculptures that can enhance and complement existing furnishings. You have to decide what kind of sculpture fits the tone of your home and the furnishings it contains. The following are a few of the most common materials and techniques to consider for your home sculptures:
Ceramic—Ceramic art is used on a design level and for industrial applications. For home design, ceramic artifacts, tiles, statues and mosaics work brilliantly as a wall decoration, pottery and porcelain. They also pair well with the solid oak, cherry, and maple hardwoods found in handcrafted Amish furniture. Like studio glass, ceramics are delicate but add a distinctive aesthetic to a home.
Glass—Studio glass is very popular as a form of home design and artistic expression that creates stunning sculptures. This can take the form of stained glass, lampworking, glass beadmaking, casting and fusing. Glass sculptures can create stunning effects in lighting, color, and spacial dimensions and can be used on walls, in the garden, on a mantlepiece, or just to spice up the dining room table.
Garden sculptures—Garden sculptures have been popular for centuries, in domestic and sacred atmospheres. Greeks and Romans typically built garden sculptures of religious iconography, gods, kings and royal figures. In contemporary times, garden sculptures have remained a popular form of garden design along with horticulture, which are often combined for breathtaking effects.
Relief sculptures—This is a sculptural technique that involves a material being juxtaposed, raised, or protruding from or against a background plane. The materials can include metal, clay, plaster stucco, ceramics, bronze or just about anything. Relief sculptures are subject to architectural considerations and are divided into high (popular in Classical Greece), low (popular in ancient Rome), mid, and sunk (notable in ancient Egypt).
Statues—There are literally thousands of different kinds of statues that you could use in your home or garden. Animals, gargoyles, religious figures, mythological characters—the list is as varied as the human mind. Many home designers fuel their creativity into the unique placement of a statue, making it blend into its background or perching on a roof or porch.
Sculptures are not something to be taken lightly—literally and figuratively. Deciding on a material and a theme for a sculpture that will live in your home or garden is a big decision, as is figuring out an inexpensive way to transport the thing!