Matrioska, Polyester resin, plaster komposite, 2010, Monika Horcicova
- Immediate Response
When I first looked at this sculpture, I thought about the idea of your true, authentic self being under what you portray yourself to be. Like the little version of herself of her soul and who she is at her core. I also find it interesting how she uses hot pink to contrast the pale porcelain color of the rest of the sculpture. I think the poses on the bigger statue and the mini statue, although the same, portray different emotions. The bigger upper half that’s lying on the ground looks almost shocked or alarmed. Her eyes are wide and she stares off into space, facing the audience. While the little statue that stands in the legs of the bigger statue looks down at the bigger upper half of the body. The placement of the arms also adds to it. Like the smaller statue is admiring or reminiscing.
2. Objective Description
The sculpture consists of two focal points. Both parts of the sculpture are replicas of each other. The piece is made up of a sculpture of a woman holding her stomach and chest. There is a big woman and a small woman, both of them being identical to each other. The bigger woman is cut in half right below her belly button. Her uphalf lies on the ground facing the camera. The legs or lower half of the bigger woman is upright and stands on its feet. The smaller woman sits inside the legs of the bigger woman. The smaller one is a whole form with a pink line in the same place as the cutline on the bigger woman. Both sculptures are porcelain white in color except for the line on the smaller woman and the internal part of the torso and legs of the bigger woman. The internal part of the sculpture is a hot pink color.
3. Technical Decisions
The sculpture sits on a pedestal with the legs of the bigger woman and the small woman, standing within the bigger woman’s legs, on a slightly raised pedestal. The torso of the larger woman lies slightly below the pedestal that the legs and smaller woman is on. The sculpture is in a room with, what seems to be, brick flooring and stands against a white wall. I think that the use of a white wall in the background and the sculpture being indoors helps the pink within the piece stand out more. Also, due to the sculpture being against the wall, the piece can’t be observed in the round. The back of the sculpture is hidden.
4. The Work in the World
The use of the human body and the stone-like appearance of the sculpture reminds me of sculptures from the Renaissance period. The way Horcicova includes muscle that can be seen beneath the skin reminds me specifically of The David. I’m reminded of that sculpture specifically because over the summer I went on a study abroad trip where we studied Da Vinci and famous pieces made during that art period. I got to see The David in person and got a chance to sketch the sculpture for a little. During this observation, I noticed the muscles that were carved into the stone. Additionally, as a Biomedical Engineer, I focus on the human body a lot during my studies.
5. The Story it Tells
I believe that this sculpture depicts the different layers of what makes up a person. The smaller woman that sits inside the bigger woman has a pink line that dissects its midsection, which indicates that the sculpture can be broken up further and another woman lies inside the other, similar to Russian nesting dolls. I interpret the art as depicting how a woman is multifaceted and has many layers. The way that both women pose the same, but seem to be expressing two different emotions furthers my reasoning behind why I interpret this piece the way I do. They may pose the same, but the bigger woman’s upper half looks more taken aback with her eyes wide open. The smaller woman looks down at the bigger torso, holding the same pose, but it looks like she’s reminiscing. I think this shows how there are layers to an expression and, by extension, a person.