Monica Mahoney
Women Walking
April 2010 – March 2011
As part of an ongoing mission to support local artists and promote collecting in
our region, 21c Museum Hotel and Proof on Main are pleased to present the most recent
body of work by Louisville-based artist, Monica Mahoney. Many visitors will recognize
Mahoney from her recent art car creations for 21c, the Pip Mobile (red limo) and Blind Spot (mirror covered convertible). This
same attention to detail and craft has inspired her painting over the last twenty
years.
Women Walking is perhaps Mahoney's most ambitious painting project to date
both conceptually and technically. Interested by what she calls "commissures"
or unforgettable life-altering moments, Mahoney was drawn to the cinematic qualities
of these moments and naturally looked to film for inspiration when creating the
six paintings specifically designed to fit Proof's large dining room walls.
"I began collecting images from obscure independent and foreign films that
would be free of associations for the most part. I discovered a common pictorial
thread: often women are depicted walking to illustrate their transitions into the
unknown.
"The final straw can be something profound or seemingly insignificant. When
it strikes, there is no time to make arrangements. No white horses are at the ready.
With every cell in her body, the heroine knows she cannot keep doing what she has
been doing for one second longer. The line is felt so deeply and decisively that
it can never be erased. The clarity frees and propels her forward. Regardless of
what the women are walking away from, they are all walking toward the same thing
— themselves."
Exhibited Works
NÜ, Walnut oils on canvas, footage from Silent Light. 9'
x 5', 2010.
MAINTENANT, Walnut oils on canvas, footage from Kitchen. 9' x
5', 2010.
СЕЙЧАС,Walnut oils on canvas, footage from 40 Shades of Blue.
9' x 5', 2010.
SIMDI, Walnut oils on canvas, footage from Edge of Heaven. 9'
x 5', 2010.
NOW, Walnut oils on canvas, footage from Rain. 9' x 5', 2010.
AHORA, Walnut oils on canvas, footage from Silent Light. 9' x
5', 2010.
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