Let's look back on the year and check out some of the most amazing sculptures in 2014. Who “wow-ed” us with their ingenuity? What sculptures made us do a double-take? Today, we present to you twelve sculptures that stood out because of the materials the artists used, the way the sculptures simulated movement or because of their sheer size. So, without further ado, check out these stunningly carved sculptures we wish we could have come up with ourselves!
12. Beautiful Skulls Carved and Painted on Mother of Pearl Shells by Gregory Halili 
New Jersey-based artist Gregory Halili creates stunning bas-relief skulls delicately hand-carved and painted on mother of pearl shells. Inspired by the lush vegetation and tropical wildlife of the Philippines, where he was born and raised, Halili fuses the human form with the natural world in these lovely, intricate works of art. See more, here.
11. Nature-Inspired Crayon Sculptures by Herb Williams
Nashville, Tennesse-based artist Herb Williams' unique medium of choice is the Crayola crayon, an object that most of us remember scribbling messily with as children. In Williams' hands, however, the crayon becomes a powerful and sophisticated tool used to create incredibly vibrant sculptures with bold colors and textures. In one of his most recent exhibitions, Call of the Wild, the artist uses melted and chopped-up crayons to construct nature-inspired sculptures such as a color-blocked deer, two wolves spewing a rainbow arch from their mouths, romping rabbits in solid hues, crows perching on a bright tree, and a tree trunk with technicolor rings. See more, here.
10. Colorful Glass Reflect Gorgeous Patterns by Chris Wood 
Given her last name, you wouldn't immediately expect that Cambridgeshire-based artist Chris Wood's material of choice is delicate pieces of glass. Using small squares, Wood designs captivating arrangements and relies on light and reflection to influence her colorfully dazzling final products. See more, here.
9. Mesmerizing Paper Sculptures by Jen Stark 
Los Angeles-based artist Jen Stark recently returned to her hometown of Miami to participate in Art Basel 2014, an annual event that provides a platform for galleries to show off contemporary works of art. On display at Eric Firestone Gallery's booth at the UNTITLED Art Fair were some of Stark's newest, craziest paper sculptures yet, filled with just as much color and depth as her previous works. See more, here.
8. Steampunk Animal Sculptures by Igor Verniy 
Artist Igor Verniy assembles stunningly detailed, steampunk-infused animal sculptures out of discarded metal, car and bike parts, watch components, electronics, silverware, and other metal scraps. Spanning a myriad of species from birds to reptiles to insects, Verniy's works feature working joints to allow the creatures to be posed and re-posed. Many of the pieces are painted after assembly to drape them in a more vibrant color scheme. See more, here.
7. Fantastical Wooden Sculptures by Bruno Torfs
In his personal sculpture garden, Australian artist Bruno Torfs crafts wooden figures that live in the forest. Embracing fantasy, his life-sized works feature delightfully unusual characters. We see things like a bearded wizard carrying an armful of tiny creatures and a young princess riding a unicorn. Torfs incorporates the natural landscape into his art, using tree branches and leaves as a part of his subjects' hair or body. After carving, they remain unpainted and blend in with their surroundings. See more, here.
6. Dynamic Steel Wire Fairy Sculptures by Robin Wright 
UK-based artist Robin Wight uses stainless steel wire to form stunning, dramatic sculptures of winged fairies dancing in the wind. The enchanting forms, which range in size from miniature to life-sized, seem to have a life of their own as they strike dynamic poses, contort their bodies, and hold onto windswept dandelions. See more, here.
5. The Kelpies: Giant Horse Heads by Andy Scott
The Kelpies is an enormous installation consisting of two giant horse head sculptures by artist Andy Scott. The 100-foot-tall structures, which were eight years in the making, are inspired by a legend from the artist's Scottish background that tells of a water spirit that takes the shape of a horse. More than just a pair of broncos to Scott, the sculptures serve as monuments of the artist's national pride. See more, here.
4. Kaleidoscope House by Tom Fruin
Check out those rainbow reflections! For this year's DUMBO Arts Festival, artist Tom Fruin and performance duo CoreAct presented a collaborative project called Reflection / Kolonihavehus in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Fruin's colorful plexiglass house, called Kolonihavehus, was on display. In previous years, the outdoor sculpture had been shown throughout Europe, such as in Sweden, Denmark, Austria and the Czech Republic. See more, here.
3. Ocean Waves Sculpture by Ben Young
Check out those rainbow reflections! For this year's DUMBO Arts Festival, artist Tom Fruin and performance duo CoreAct presented a collaborative project called Reflection / Kolonihavehus in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Fruin's colorful plexiglass house, called Kolonihavehus, was on display. In previous years, the outdoor sculpture had been shown throughout Europe, such as in Sweden, Denmark, Austria and the Czech Republic. See more, here.
2. Ocean Atlas: Largest Underwater Sculpture in the World by Jason deCaires Taylor
The work is the largest single sculpture ever to be deployed underwater, at 5 meters tall by 4 meters wide (or 16 feet by 13 feet) and 60 tons. It took the artist Jason deCaires Taylor one year to design the and build the beautiful sculpture. It was made in layers and cut from a CNC router, which is computer controlled cutting machine. Assembled underwater in sections, it was deCaires Taylor's most ambitious work to date. See more, here.
1. Gigantic Man Erupts from the Earth by Ervin Lornth Herv 
A gigantic man crawls out from the earth in this spectacular outdoor sculpture titled Feltpve (“ripped up” or “popped up”) by Hungarian artist Ervin Lornth Herv. Crafted from polystyrene, the larger-than-life sculpture was temporarily installed in Budapest's Szchenyi Square for the Art Market Budapest art fair that took place earlier this October. See more, here.
