Spoglia d’oro su spine d’acacia – occhio

Belonging to the Anatomie series, Spoglia d’Oro su Spine d’Acacia (Occhio) presents what resembles a close-up of a face, featuring one closed eyelid. The canvas is covered in lines of silk, onto which acacia thorns have been stuck, forming the motif, with a fleck of gold leaf set at the corner of the eye. Although the assemblage of gold, thorns and silk may evoke the alchemical world, it is the tactile dimension that is being evoked here: the closed eye on what appears to be an imprint of a real face indicates that another meaning must be sought – the pricking sensation that we feel when facing a wall of thorns. Spoglia d’Oro su Spine d’Acacia (Occhio) broaches the intimate relationship that forms between interior and exterior by way of touch, when the skin comes into contact with another entity, and when this other body leaves an impression on our own. The intricacy of the manual labour involved in creating the image also brings in the dimension of time. 

The artwork was exhibited for the first time at Marian Goodman Gallery, New York, in 2003.