From lengths of black cord, thread, and fine metals, Jeanne Vicerial summons the ageless, transformative power of armor and protective garments in a new series of sculptures. Drawing on her body of work titled Armors, the artist continues to create enigmatic sculptures that question the nature of presence, consciousness, and change.
In the artist’s current solo exhibition, Nymphose, at TEMPLON, darkly mysterious figures stand in silent, contemplative observation. Some works, like “Persephone n°3” or “Présence, Amnios,” portray semblances of human faces, while others like “Mue n°9, Nymphose” may be inhabited by something more like a spirit or an otherworldly deity than a physical person.
Vicerial has recently introduced metals like copper and gold into bodily cavities in her works, emphasizing feminine power and internal energy, which the gallery describes as “objects-as-offerings.” For the artist, these works center around the nature of metamorphosis, both in the process of translating a single length of rope into a fully-formed sculpture and in the biological and emotional ways that women transform over time.
Like her Armors, the figures in Nymphose possess individual strength that heightens when gathered together. Vicerial employs words like “Gardienne” in her titles, French for “guardian,” to imply protection. “Mue” translates to “molt,” like the way an animal might shed its feathers or skin to make room for new growth.
Delicate and soft, Vicerial’s figures are simultaneously tall, elegant, timeless sages. The artist positions their vulnerabilities as strengths, tapping into the societal taboo of women aging and the inevitable cycle of life.
Nymphose continues in Paris through July 19. Explore more on Vicerial’s website and Instagram.
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