Ron Mueck: Encounter, at the Art Gallery of NSW

If you want to see something extra special before it leaves Australian shores, I suggest you head straight to the Art Gallery of NSW.

That is where, until only next Sunday (12^th April, 2026), you can view the remarkable work of renowned Melbourne-born sculptor Ron Mueck. 

His is an art form known as hyperrealism, which focuses on fine detail, such as that which can be found in high-resolution photographs.

Mueck, 67, who has been based in the UK since 1986, works with clay, fibreglass and silicone to sculpt life-like large and miniaturised humans and animals.

His attention to detail is uncanny. 

The expressions he crafts while showing off veins, freckles, moles, even scratches and wrinkled, hairy skin via hand painting are extremely evocative.

Each piece can take months, on occasion more than a year, to complete.

I was metaphorically shaking my head in disbelief as to what he has achieved.

Mueck’s parents were toy makers and Ron, who now lives and works on the Isle of Wight, got involved in puppetry. 

He was a creative director on Australian television shows such as Shirl’s Neighbourhood and Lift Off.

Then, he moved to the US to work in film and advertising, which included projects with Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets.

In fact, notably, he designed, performed and voiced the character of Ludo in the 1986 Henson fantasy film Labyrinth.

Mueck’s major breakout though occurred in 1997. 

That is when he produced a half-scale sculpture known as Dead Dad, which reflected his recently deceased father.

It was included in an exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in London.

His career has soared around the world since.

Mueck is interested in the small, unspoken details of human behaviour.

Each of the 14 works that constitute his exhibition in lower level 2 in the Naala Badu building at the Art Gallery of NSW is superb in its own right.

A 15^th, equally redolent piece, is permanently housed on the ground floor in the gallery’s Naala Nura building.

Together, they are highly stimulating.

The titles are simply descriptive, but the awe that the pieces engender is something else. I felt privileged to be connecting so emotionally with great art. 

Pregnant Woman is a pointer to the many symbolic, often sacred, images of motherhood in European artistic tradition.

Mueck’s sculptures often document apparently inconsequential everyday interactions.

Woman with Shopping showcases a sleep-deprived woman and baby whom Mueck passed briefly on a London street and quickly sketched.

Spooning Couple is a work of sharp psychological tension.

At first glance, Young Couple reveals itself to be a study of youthful affection, but it pays to look again at this close, if disconnected, pair.

Dark Place is an overtly gothic work featuring a troubled man.

Man in Blankets presents a swaddled ageing figure.

Ghost is an incarnation of adolescent self-consciousness.

Woman with Sticks combines nakedness with toil.

chicken/man portrays an old family friend of the artist facing off with a chicken.

Mueck worked in the studio with a heavyset, naked and completely shaven model until a new, scowling giant was born. The name of this work is Big Man.

Havoc is the stuff of nightmares – two fierce packs of dogs (eight in total) conjured from some ancient mythic source to recall guardians of the underworld.

This Little Piggy captures the brutal death struggle of a porker set upon by a group of men.

Couple under an Umbrella is a beach scene involving an elderly couple.

Finally, in the Naala Nura building is Old Woman in Bed, inspired by a hospital visit Mueck made to a relative. The frail figure magnifies her vulnerability. 

I can’t emphasise enough just how extraordinary these pieces are and how gifted Ron Mueck is.

Ron Mueck: Encounters is on now at the Art Gallery of NSW.

Due to high demand, the gallery has extended the opening hours and added special, late-night, and 2-for-1 sessions for the final week of the exhibition.

Unquestionably one of the finest I have seen, do not miss it.