Zhang Huan
Small Three Heads Six Arms, 2011
Copper, 4' 5 1/8" x 8’ x 5’ 1 1/2"
(134.9 x 243.8 x 156.2 cm)
Courtesy Pace Gallery

This work is a small version of Three Heads Six Arms (2008), a monumental work by Zhang that was displayed outside City Hall in San Francisco from 2010–2011. Zhang has said that the idea for this work originated from a small, bronze figure with a damaged arm that he acquired at a Tibetan market, and has spoken of what he sees as the "supernatural power" of the work. One of the three heads is that of a traditional Buddha figure, but the two others are of humans—and one is a self-portrait of the artist.