Spanish artist Mariano Vilallonga enlisted Matt to translate a series of small hand-sculpted maquettes into large-format sculptural works for his exhibition “Itinerarios de la resistencia: 58 eran 83”. A poetic journey that traces the artist’s attempt to walk a straight line between city and mountain, revealing how the utopia of a direct path is transformed by the reality of the terrain and the built environment.

Centro de Arte Alcobendas, Madrid. July - September 2025.

Starting with the maquettes, La Frustracion, El Descanso, La Vigía, El Caminar - Matt 3D scanned the figures with high-resolution photogrammetry. Once the data was processed, the resulting digital 3D models were cleaned and optimised, with subtle edits made to composition and proportion in consultation with the artist.

Each model was digitally scaled to their final dimensions (124 cm, 230 cm, 275 cm and 220 cm). Structural analysis software was used to evaluate material thickness, weight, and centre of mass - ensuring the designs could be safely fabricated without compromising the artists vision.

The digital files were delivered for large-scale milling in polystyrene. From there, Vilallonga applied hand-carved surface textures and finished with a surface treatment of acrylic and river sand.

Exhibition photographs by Laura Enim