Awareness Post: Willard Wigan

Imagine creating tiny artworks so small that they can fit inside the eye of a needle.

Willard Wigan is a British micro-sculptor renowned for creating some of the smallest artworks in the world, often placing them inside the eye of a needle or on the head of a pin. His sculptures are so tiny that they are invisible to the naked eye and require a microscope to be fully appreciated. A single sculpture can be as small as 0.005 mm.

Wigan was deeply inspired to create his unique artworks due to his challenging childhood experiences. Struggling with dyslexia and feeling disconnected during his early education, he found solace and a sense of purpose in art, especially in creating small sculptures.

At 50 years old, he was diagnosed with autism, and he says that this has only driven his work further. However, Wigan believes his mother knew he struggled at school when he was young and encouraged him to create his tiny works of art. "My inspiration is underestimation, because people underestimate," he said. When he was young he used to ask himself, "Is there something wrong with me?"

"My mum would always say that there are diamonds in the dustbin, meaning people would throw them in to the bin and not realise what's in there until they've taken the lid off and realise they've thrown a diamond in there, and that's what autistic people are, they're diamonds," he said.

Wigan said when he was younger he used to have disorientation problems and what he described as repetitive behavior. He has since found purpose in his art, but added: "It drives me mad doing it, working 16-17 hours a day, all the way through the night." To create the tiny sculptures he has trained himself to be very still, slowing down his breathing and becoming aware of background vibration and even his pulse. "I don't get any pleasure at all, I only get pleasure when I finish it," he said.

Wigan carves his delicate pieces from materials such as grains of sand, dust particles, and even spider silk, using tools as fine as sharpened acupuncture needles and his own eyelashes. Due to the extreme precision required, he works in between his heartbeats to minimize hand tremors that could destroy his creations. He is 67 years old and still making this intricate type of artwork today.