two laments (drawing series)
Two Laments (Diptych I), 2015
Two Laments Drawing Series
2015
Two Laments (Diptych I), rubber latex, found photography, charcoal, dry pigment on rice paper, 70 x 38 inches each panel
Two Laments (Diptych II), rubber latex, charcoal, dry pigment, graphite on rice paper, 70 x 38 inches each panel
Two Laments (Lament I), charcoal, dry pigment, graphite on newsprint paper mounted on watercolor paper, 22 x 32 inches
Two Laments (Lament II), charcoal, dry pigment, graphite on newsprint paper mounted on watercolor paper, 22 x 32 inches
photographic documentation by Jean Vong
Two Laments (Diptych II), 2015
Two Laments (Lament I), 2015
Two Laments (Lament II), 2015
Essay Excerpt
In addition to recognizing the qualities of charcoal that adapts to the artist’s needs (its capacity to be held firmly, crushed, its ability to stain, and the symbolic associations), Weiss uses other materials with comparable purpose. Graphite powder for example, when mixed with water has properties similar to ink. The type of paper is also carefully considered. Since about 2005, Weiss has often worked on Japanese rice paper because of its transparency and ability to evoke the surface of skin, allowing her to double the metaphorical connotations when so much of her work revolves around the body. Equally striking is Weiss’ use of latex combined with charcoal establishing contrasts between smooth and rough, transparency and opacity, that transmits vulnerability and strength [… ] Weiss’ search for techniques that adequately express artistic preoccupations is a hallmark of her approach, wherein the media is interrogated for its capacity to perform the mark and leave a trace, a path that multiplies and incessantly divides. [to read entire text press here]
Mark McDonald, Drawing Consciousness: Monika Weiss in Monika Weiss-Nirbhaya, Centre of Polish Sculpture in Orońsko, 2021, pp. 54 - 76
Exhibitions
Kentler Celebrates 25: Advisory Board Selects, Kentler International Drawing Space, New York, 2015, Monika Weiss work was curated by Charlotta Kotik
A View from the Cloud, Streaming Museum, New York, 2017, curated by Nina Colosi
Monika Weiss: Monument | Anti-Monument, CEL Center for Architecture & Design, St. Louis, 2021, curated by Jasmin Aber
