MARION — Marvel fans may be delighted to see familiar objects, heroes and images fill the galleries of the town’s Art Center. However, Mattapoisett sculptor John Magnan, who crafted many of the pieces, added a bit of a twist, and a biting social commentary on American life to each piece. 

The exhibit, which had an opening reception Feb. 21, is called “Thor’s Hammer,” named after a weapon that can only be used by the Norse God Thor, or by a few worthy others. Magnan explained in the notes for the piece that he had been wanting to make the hammer for a long time, but when he did he couldn’t help but be reminded of a judge’s gavel, “a symbol of judicial responsibility.” 

Another piece references the “Death Throws,” a team of supervillains who use juggling as a weapon. The Mattapoisett sculptor crafted two grenades for the villains to juggle, one adorned with the democratic donkey and the other with the republican elephant as a symbol of a fractured political discourse. 

The sculptor paired a “soul stone,” which allows its user to control the fates and souls both living and dead, with a cage as a commentary on how the prison pipeline alters lives. 

A literal sword-shaped space station from the Marvel universe that hovers above Earth as if it were hanging by a thread, threatening it, becomes in Magnan’s eyes a glowing sword hanging by a single wire, above a pair of boots, a symbol for those who make just enough to get by and are easily devastated by one unexpected expense. 

Magnan also called in artist and family friend André Olivier, who in turn suggested his friend Sarah Swible (who works in Marion) to contribute paintings for some of the walls of the galleries. 

Both Olivier and Swible have been lifelong Marvel fans, and jumped at the chance to contribute, even if it meant getting pieces done in three months. The trio brainstormed ideas together, with Magnan giving the younger artists, “advice on how to compact ideas,” Olivier said. 

Olivier said that one of the tough parts of the project for him was learning to convey a message without words. Ironically, Magnan didn’t hold himself to the same constraints, making one artwork (a portrait of longtime Marvel Director Stan Lee, because what’s a Marvel exhibit without a Stan Lee cameo?) entirely out of quotes by the director. 

“I love seeing people so passionate about it,” said Swible, after observing the crowd at the reception. 

The Marion Art Center will host Magnan to speak about his work on Thursday, Feb. 27 beginning at 6 p.m. During the presentation, he will discuss his creative process and the works, followed by an informal Q&A.