‘You lose the colour but you different shades of ash, different greys and blacks. It’s a real ferocious act of creation. You don’t lose it, what you get is another thing.’
The sculptures are crafted by firstly making a clay mould of the head and creating a fibreglass or plastic version from it. The matchsticks are then stuck on using wood glue.
The different coloured matches are imported from Japan and used to create everything from animals to Charlie Chaplin, world leaders and cartoon characters.
Mr Mach started working with matches in 1982 and made a portrait which ended up being the first portrait that he sold.
The stunning effect of the art going up in flames was discovered when the collector who bought the sculpture accidentally set it on fire whilst cleaning it.
He called Mr Mach over and they agreed that the ‘matchheads’ were performance pieces and he began setting fire to his work.
‘When I have ideas I want to make them, and not just some of them, but all of them. As a result of that my sculpture covers a multitude of sins,’ Mr Mach said.
He set 'The Devil' alight at his recent exhibition Precious Light in Edinburgh. The exhibition is based on the King James Bible and just finished its second outing at Galway Arts Festival
David Mach's take on Charlie Chaplin uses white, black and red matches mixed with wood
IMAGE CORNER
