Sleeping Shark

Curled into a neat spiral, Emil Alzamora’s “Sleeping Shark” is not unlike the artist’s other sculptural work, which often shows human forms twisted into impossible contortions. Here, a hammerhead shark’s flat, protruding head is locked into place by its tail fins. Typically seen as threatening creatures with razor-sharp teeth, sharks sleep only briefly and typically maintain movement during periods of rest. Alzamora has emasculated this notoriously predatory animal by representing it in the unnatural state of inert slumber. “Sleeping Shark” is finished in a silvery-blue glaze that makes it gleam like freshly-polished chrome.