Many are calling this artist the eighth wonder of the world. The artist's name is Willard Wigan. Wigan creates the world's smallest sculptures on pinheads and the eyes of needles between heartbeats. His sculptures are barely one hundredth of an inch tall and have to be done under a microscope.Willard sculpts his work from gold, nylon, carbon fiber and grains of sand. He's developed his technique for more than 40 years. Each sculpture takes several months to complete and is done in total solitude in his studio.
"The stillness of it is very important - you have to control the whole nervous system, you have to work between the heartbeat - the pulse of your finger can destroy the work," explains Willard. [1
There is a dark side to his life, however. He is dyslexic and had tremendous difficulty in school. Says Willard, "I can't read or write but I have a way of expressing myself. The teachers at school made me feel small so they made me feel like nothing. I'm trying to prove to the world that nothing doesn't exist."
Because of the humiliation he experienced as a child, Willard kept his art secret for many years. He felt that it too would be criticized. He started out building miniature homes for ants and other insects. He then transferred that to art while using special tools such as a hair to brush on the paint. To do this, he has to have a very steady hand. His work is so small that he inhaled one of his sculptures while working on it.
"You have to control the whole nervous system, you have to work between the heartbeat - the pulse of your finger can destroy the work," says Willard.
Willard was born in 1957 at Birmingham, England. He has received his MBE for service to the arts from the Prince of Wales in 2007. Lloyds of London commissioned Willard to replicate the Lloyd's of London building on a pinhead. This art was later sold for £94,000 ($143,689). His first exhibition sold for £11.2 million ($17.1 million). Willard is currently touring the UK and is scheduled for America and Canada. This month his work is at the Friar Lane Gallery in Nottingham.
In spite of it all, he fought against all odds and is now a millionaire. Says Willard, "People haven't seen the best of me yet. I'm going to take it smaller."
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