Part of the ongoing Self Portraits as a Building series, Dry Clay Figure reflects Mark Manders’ long-standing exploration of identity through sculptural language. Developed within a body of work initiated in 1986, the series constructs a psychological and architectural self-portrait through objects, fragmented figures, and spatial compositions that operate as physical sentences

The sculpture presents a suspended state between figuration and abstraction, combining bodily references with geometric restraint. Manders’ use of dry clay evokes the appearance of unfired material—suggesting fragility, temporality, and arrested transformation—while his assemblage of elements recalls archaeological fragments, domestic artefacts, and architectural remnants arranged into a quiet narrative structure

Manders’ practice has been presented internationally, including solo exhibitions at the Bonnefantenmuseum Maastricht, the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art Kanazawa, and CGAC Santiago de Compostela, alongside major institutional presentations at Palais de Tokyo Paris and the Aichi Triennial. Within this context, Dry Clay Figure stands as a contemplative study of memory, language, and the construction of self through material form