Features ‘Proportion’, an essay by Christopher Moonery.

This book is published in conjunction with the exhibition ‘Pliny’s Sorrow - Johan Creten’ Almine Rech Brussels, May 20 - July 23, 2011.

Pliny’s Sorrow is comprised of nine enigmatic bronzes, eight of which were specifically created for the exhibition. Creten, best known for virtuosic works in kiln-fired ceramics, particularly his flowering Odore di Femmina busts in terracotta, is also a master of lost-wax foundry casting in bronze. The title is borrowed from the largest work in the exhibition — an eagle-like bird, its giant wings stretched out and broken, its roughly hewn back hollowed out. The solid and the ephemeral, forged in massive, enduring bronze — this is Creten’s most remarkable achievement.