Sphinx (gold leaf), 2011

A contemporary visual artist, Marc Quinn has received widespread acclaim for his portrayal of the human form and its many complexities and variations. Quinn is known to use a variety of organic materials including bread, leaves, and even his own blood – his on-going series, titled ‘Self’ is a self-portrait formed through a frozen cast that is made up of 10 pints of his own blood; Quinn re-visits this work every 5 years by creating a new cast with fresh blood. Asides from the organic materials that he has become associated with, Quinn uses traditional materials such as bronze, marble and stainless steel; perhaps his most famous sculpture to focus on the differences found across the scale of human bodies is that of Alison Lapper, a fellow British artist born sans arms and with extremely shortened legs – it was displayed on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square, London between September 2005 and October 2007. (Artist website)