# Politically Infused Sculptures Penny Byrne Adds Ironic Humor to Porcelain Figures By Ana Lopez | Published 2011-12-14 | Art & Design Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/penny-byrne References: [mymodernmet](http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/shockingly-satirical-porcelain-sculptures) & [ssfa.au](http://www.ssfa.com.au/artists/byrne-penny/) Porcelain figures are known to be old-fashioned and tasteless; however, artist Penny Byrne added a little twist to these sculptures to make them more appealing to larger audiences. The Australia-based artist altered the appearance of [old figures](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/thrilljoy-pix) to mock and satire [political and social issues](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/snowflake-exhibition). The result of this clever manipulation is a revamped set of characters that questions controversial subjects like global warming, civil rights, art and war. For instance, an elephant is transformed into a soldier with a gun coming out from its mouth; or a ballerina is covered in blood and holds a head while striking a dancing pose. Also, each [ceramic piece](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/beginner-ceramics) has a funny title that is often a pun. The controversial art by Penny Byrne can be seen at the SSFA End of Year 2011 exhibit at Sullivan+Strumpf until December 23, 2011. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 6.1/10 - Popularity: 95% | Activity: 81% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: North America, Europe, Asia ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Art & Design](https://www.trendhunter.com/artdesign) > [Design](https://www.trendhunter.com/design) ## Key Themes ### Key Themes Behind This Trend - **Revamped Sculptures:** Exploring the trend of altering traditional sculptures to give them a modern and satirical twist, offering disruption opportunities in the art and creative industries. - **Political Satire Art:** The use of porcelain figures to mock and critique political and social issues, presenting opportunities for disruption in the art and political commentary sectors. - **Controversial Ceramics:** Creating ceramic pieces that address contentious topics like global warming, civil rights, and war, opening up potential for innovation in ceramics and socially conscious design. ### Where This Applies - **Art:** The art industry can explore new avenues for engaging audiences through revamped sculptures and politically-infused artwork. - **Ceramics:** There is potential for disruption in the ceramics industry by creating controversial and socially conscious ceramic pieces that challenge traditional notions of porcelain figures. - **Political Commentary:** Political satire art using porcelain figures offers new opportunities for disruptive innovation within the realm of political commentary and social critique. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Biology-Inspired Porcelain Sculptures](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/shiyuan-xu.md) - [Modern Poertic Ceramics](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/virginia-sin.md) - [Human Hair-Made Pots](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/range-of-pots.md) - [Performance Art Furniture](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/bio-pop.md) - [Digital Archetype Sculptures](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/christian-rex-van-minnen-1.md) - [Innovative Ceramic Tableware](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/ceramic-tableware1.md) - [Origami-Inspired Porcelain Art](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/saori-matsushita.md) - [Human Torso-Inspired Sculptures](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/lene-bdker.md) - [Textural Porcelain Vessels](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/tamara-efrat.md)