Breathing Life into 200-million-year-old marble.
Former Artist-in-Residence, Washington National Cathedral
Et cetera...
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What's so great about marble?
Natural marble is the most exquisite, inanimate material one might find. It is strong, yet delicate. Light passing through its crystalline structure diffuses in a translucency like human skin. Marble can maintain sharply-defined edges, or shaped into soft, voluptuous forms.
The beauty and permanence of marble made it the first choice of ancient Greek sculptors. Whether transformed into fluffy, cumulus clouds, or roughly textured as Stonehenge, marble can outlast mortal memories, preserving ancient dreams in tangible form.
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What do Geo. Washington & Napoleon have in common?
In 1784, the Virginia General Assembly commissioned French sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon to carve a statue of George Washington. Napoleon commissioned the Italian sculptor Antonio Canova to carve a marble likeness of himself as "Mars the Peacemaker". In 1808, Canova carved a life-size, semi-nude sculpture of Napoleon's sister, Pauline Bonaparte. It was commissioned by her husband Camillo Borghese.
In 1816, former President Thomas Jefferson recommended Antonio Canova to the North Carolina General Assembly. They commissioned Canova to deliver a life-sized likeness of Sir Walter Raleigh. 1,600 years before, the Roman Emperor Hadrian had commissioned a likeness of his lover, the "Capitoline Antinous".
If sculptural marble likenesses were good enough for emperors' and American forefahers, they are good enough for you and your loved ones.
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Bio
Robert Mihaly was born in the Midwest, Akron, Ohio. As a teenager, he began independently marketed art. At 21, he picked up a hammer and chisel. He's been determinedly hammering on rocks ever since.
Between a succession of commissions, Mihaly has traveled the world studying both masterpieces and techniques from thousands-of-years-old traditions from destinations like Pietrasanta, Italy and other thousands-of-years-old traditions from isolated stone-carving villages in China. Combined with the most state-of-the-art tools available, Mihaly has developed various original sculpture techniques.
Selected Clients:
US Postal Service
State of North Carolina
Commonwealth of Virginia
Duke University
UNC Chapel Hill
City of Raleigh, NC
Bryant-Stratton College
Cape Fear Valley Medical Center
Mark Hampton Interiors
Monuments:
Elizabeth Edwards Monument
Wade's Angel Monument
Paradiso and the Inferno Monumental Sculpture
Fallsoleum Monument
Appointments:
Artsplosure judge
Artist-in-Residence, Washington National Cathedral
Artist-in-Residence, Meredith College
guest lecturer at North Carolina Central University
instructor, Durham Arts Council.
Testimonials
"It is well with me only when I have a chisel in my hand."
- Signor Buonarroti