Goodman Gallery is delighted to present Unutterable, a new series of paintings by Rose Shakinovsky and her first presentation in London. This series stems from internet images gathered over the past four years, covering wars, social unrest, migration and climate devastation.
Through a process of digitally altering found images to mimic traditional abstract painterly qualities, Shakinovsky was able to create the foundation for each work. This unplanned process enabled a reconfiguration of the original narrative into a language of sensation that still retained the essence of the event. Through this a strange visual language of self-generated abstract forms and unexpected compositions emerge. Translating these digital images back into oil paint completed the evolution of the work. The paintings are direct copies of the digital prints with no further manipulation or aesthetic decisions. The process is akin to precise copying of medieval manuscripts with no room for error. The work, therefore, defies traditional artistic conventions that define abstract art as either self-expressive or formal, detached from political and social circumstances.
“I have always been interested in the post-linguistic, when words fail or cannot contain an emotion, whether it be horrific or sublime. Painting offers just that alternative to evoke more psychological associations and memories that are not clearly defined but resonate deeply. Painting offers a space for catharsis and contemplation,” Rose Shakinovsky
Artworks
About
rosenclaire
Born in Johannesburg, South Africa. Live and work in Florence, Italy
Claire Gavronsky (b. 1957, Johannesburg) works in a variety of mediums, most notably in painting and sculpture. Her work often uses visual references to historical paintings, and cues are sometimes taken from events from everyday life. Memory, racism, violence against women and children are some of the themes which run through her oeuvre.
Notable solo and group exhibitions include: Io e Me. Autoritratti nel Lockdown. Sala 1, Centro Internazionale d’Arte Contemporanea, Rome (2021); Speechless with Rose Shakinovsky, Goodman Gallery, Cape Town (2018); Right to the Future, Museum of 20th and 21st Century Art, St Petersburg (2017); Colour Theory with Rose Shakinovsky, Goodman Gallery, Cape Town (2014); Dakar Biennale, Dakar (2010); and Dystopia, collaboration with William Kentridge, Pretoria, Johannesburg, Ghent (2009-2010).
Rose Shakinovsky’s (b. 1953, Johannesburg) work defies any stylistic category as it consists of work that ranges from the re-presentation and decontextualization of found objects, found images and found situations, to delicately painted abstractions and ironic bronzes. The work concerns itself with current political and social discourses while simultaneously referencing and reconstructing art historical edifices. Her present research is concerned with discourses pertaining to the posthuman, transhuman and the consequences of climate change.
Notable solo and group exhibitions include: Io e Me. Autoritratti nel Lockdown. Sala 1, Centro Internazionale d’Arte Contemporanea, Rome (2021); Speechless with Claire Gavronsky, Goodman Gallery, Cape Town (2018); Right to the Future, Museum of 20th and 21st Century Art, St Petersburg (2017); COLORI: L’emozione dei COLORI nell’arte, Castello di Rivoli Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, Rivoli (2017); Assessing Abstraction, South African National Gallery (2017); Colour Theory with Rose Shakinovsky, Goodman Gallery, Cape Town (2014); Dakar Biennale, Dakar (2010).
Shakinovsky collaborates with Gavronsky as the artist “rosenclaire”, as wives and as dedicated mentors who have run a renowned artists residency program in Tuscany for the past 30 years.
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