Aaron Alexander Smyth

whole, holy, full of holes

Pencil drawing on Fabriano Artistico 640gsm, viscose thread, blank medallions and white muslin shroud. The drawing was developed in four panels and bound together with viscose threads and embellished with medallions which often hide just out of sight.

Taking inspiration from art historical representations of the Pietà, this work foregrounds absence in both physical and representational ways, in the drawn form and through the negative space created with the cutout figure. 

Contrary to traditional representations, the focus in the drawing is placed on the folds of fabric, intricate and dynamic folds, crumples and creases which embrace a contemporary Baroque style to afford depth and richness to the depiction which is echoed in the physical drapery of the drawing. Here the focus sits between the drawn and sculptural form, reflecting on the space between, or at least their nearing proximities. In an Irish lexicon I might think of this as a ‘thin pace’, a point at which the tangible and intangible come within a whisper.  By cutting into the image to remove a figure, the work begun to test the boundaries of image making, the drawing collapsing towards a sculptural form and the negative space leaving a malleable, distorting silhouette.

This work was presented as part of Chaos Reigns at David Dale Gallery and Studios, Warehouse Space. December 2023.

Chaos Reigns is a Dark Opera that navigates between present expressions and past traces. A show which incites rhythmic explorations of sensuality and rebellion, realities and fictions which result in a piercing of the senses. Four protagonists purse the aura of this otherworld – distinct voices intertwined to form and evocative ensemble.

Aaron Alexander Smyth, Abi Charlesworth, Cora Weiss, Holly O’Brien.