Pencil Sculptures

Who needs clay or stone when you've got pencils? They're the medium of choice for South African-born, Massachusetts-based artist Jennifer Maestre, who transforms mass quantities of the familiar writing utensils into stunning, spiny sculptures with titles such as "Seethe" and "Chimera." Originally inspired by the form and function of sea urchins, her work evokes rare species discovered at the the bottom of a festively colored sea. Each sculpture begins with hundreds of pencils that Maestre cuts into one-inch square sections, before drilling a hole into each one, sharpening them, and sewing them together. "Paradox and surprise are integral in my choice of materials," she notes. "Pencils are common objects. Here, these anonymous objects become the structure."