The Blind Leader
Rachel Monosov
Rachel Monosov
The Space In-Between
(Variation 2: gold), 2018
cacti, earth, brass, copper
15 × 1.5 × 8.5 in
Rachel Monosov
The Space In-Between
(Variation 4: white), 2018
cacti, earth, copper, brass, plastic
15 × 1.5 × 8.5 in
Rachel Monosov
Fingerprint, 2018
metal, plasticine, plastic, yellow fluorescent
8 × 4 × 4 ft
Rachel Monosov
Forced, 2018
bamboo, metal, acrylic paint, dust, 2 ceramic tiles
Edition of 5
96 × 18 × 22 in
Rachel Monosov
Forced, 2018
archival print, text card
Edition of 10
26 × 13.5 in
Rachel Monosov
Waiting Room, 2018
archival print and text card
Edition of 10
27 × 14 in
Rachel Monosov
The Space In-Between, 2018
archival print and text card
Edition of 10
19 × 11.5 in
Rachel Monosov
Fingerprint, 2018
archival print and text card
Edition of 10
19.5 × 17.5 in
New York, NY, September 16, 2018: Catinca Tabacaru is pleased to present artist Rachel Monosov’s second solo exhibition with the gallery, featuring The Blind Leader, a new body of work composed largely of models for imposing limitations on the human body, and manipulating the mind. This continues Monosov’s multidisciplinary practice which consistently [and precisely] addresses micro and macro social implications woven through autobiographical context.
A banana lies on the floor of the gallery, just outside [or in front of] a fence, A Welcome Gift, inscribed with words in Russian: “my first banana 1991.”
Loaded with such minimalistic forms made from industrial materials, the works invite viewers to be both performer and witness. The Waiting Room is a metal fencing enclosure – allowing a mental or physical occupation of the space within. The fencing could be transgressed, but the weight of culture seems to make the actors obedient. Through its title, Monosov reflects on “waiting” as an existential state of existence.
At the meeting point between object and body, is a forced gesture. The limitation of one’s movements is imposed, and quickly becomes one’s nature, without being natural at all. Once conditioned, what actions can one take? Each model creates a scenario that requires a wrestling with social construction.
The fingerprint taken at a border has a hint of criminality built into the process of identification. This constant suspicion of the individual is highlighted in Monosov’s presentation of Fingerprint. Held by the neck and around the knee, the mobility of the body is challenged while an imprint equivalent in uniqueness and wonder to those found in imposing geological formations is taken as a form of intrusion and control.
The space; a scenography of a state; a proposal [of a conditional state]. An artist looking for solutions in a system where the language must change. Performative; but instead of choreographing the body, Monosov creates objects to do so. Much as the blind leader has his system of control, rendering us passive; the artist reflects such systems, requiring active thought and movement [a silent protest].