Missy Elliott

I was given 4 days to complete this unique bust of Missy Elliott for her video “Why I Still Love You”. I was a scared at first, but the more we talked about it, the more I thought “I want to do this”. The only perimeters I was given: “just do Missy Elliott”. I started with a plaster bust of Michaelangelo’s David and used air-dry clay to sculpt an ageless representation of Missy Elliott based on years of photos and videos.

After 2 days of sculpting, I had her form down and sanded the surface to create her contours. To complete the look, I draped the bust in a tracksuit from Walmart. To me, the tracksuit epitomizes Missy Elliot. I also included her trademark hoop earrings and lashes (Sally Beauty Supply purchases). And finally, it wouldn’t be Missy if it wasn’t painted gold.