Amy Simon: [WG.100] Damaged

Throughout the years Amy Simon has expressed her focus in her work throughout different subjects that she has investigated. They have incorporated a fascination about taxidermy, our relationship to angels and their meaning in our history, and a menagerie of people she has said ”Hello” to… All of her artistic research is based upon Simon’s greater interest in what mementos people universally take with them, leave as a sign, and incorporate into their own existence. Simon, over the years, has developed a unique drawing technique, where hundreds of layers of a special classic colored-pencil builds the image.

In her latest works in the exhibition Damaged, she has reduced her expression substantially; using the exact same motif in all 13 works, the same size, and using the Grisaille* technique. Upon first impression the drawings appear strangely alike, but with further investigation into Amy Simon’s “language” one actually sees a large spectrum of classical exploration while incorporating nuances. In these works, Amy Simon has come candidly close to her own persona.

Amy Simon:” … when a memory is confirmed by a photo, it acts as a catalyst for interpretation. The act of drawing and re-drawing creates a new memory of the incident, so that caught-in-time moment encompasses new meaning.”

*Grisaille is a technique that has been in use since the 14th Century. The artistic focus is to reduce all color, to only work in shades of grey. This allows the subject to become the focal point without the distraction of a strong color palette.

Published alongside the exhibition is a richly illustrated book with an essay by the American writer Baleh David. In addition to the exhibition is a short film (3:21 min) where Amy Simon explains five central questions around the works in Damaged. Watch the film here.