Andra Ursuţa’s Kaleidoscopic Photograms Give Form to Mortality at David Zwirner
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Exhibition View: Andra Ursuţa, Joy Revision, David Zwirner, London (22 September–29 October 2022). Courtesy Ocula. Photo: Annabel Downes, Ocula Advisory.
Exhibition View: Andra Ursuţa, Joy Revision, David Zwirner, London (22 September–29 October 2022). Courtesy Ocula. Photo: Annabel Downes, Ocula Advisory.
Andra Ursuţa, Bone Alone 1 (2021–2022). Photoreactive dye on velvet. 160 x 132.7 cm. Courtesy Ocula. Photo: Annabel Downes, Ocula Advisory.
Andra Ursuţa, Bone Alone 1 (2021–2022) (detail). Photoreactive dye on velvet. 160 x 132.7 cm. Courtesy Ocula. Photo: Annabel Downes, Ocula Advisory.
Exhibition View: Andra Ursuţa, Joy Revision, David Zwirner, London (22 September–29 October 2022). Courtesy Ocula. Photo: Annabel Downes, Ocula Advisory.
Andra Ursuţa, Velvet Limbo Even Closer-up (2021–2022) (detail). Photoreactive dye on velvet. 135.3 x 117.5 cm. Courtesy Ocula. Photo: Annabel Downes, Ocula Advisory.
Exhibition View: Andra Ursuţa, Joy Revision, David Zwirner, London (22 September–29 October 2022). Courtesy Ocula. Photo: Annabel Downes, Ocula Advisory.
Andra Ursuţa, Ruinatrix (2021–2022) (detail). Photoreactive dye on velvet. 160.3 x 132.7 cm. Courtesy Ocula. Photo: Annabel Downes, Ocula Advisory.
Hovering between the morbid and the beautiful, Andra Ursuţa‘s photograms and lead crystal sculptures embody the concept of memento mori.
Joy Revision (22 September–29 October 2022) is Ursuţa’s second solo presentation with David Zwirner, who has represented the New York-based Romanian artist since 2020.
Joy Revision is an unsettling yet divine presentation of Ursuţa’s latest works, examining themes of death, loss, and suffering.
The artist employs historic and modern image-making techniques in a series of photograms depicting skeletal forms, bursting with vivid hues of indigo, crimson, and ochre. These mesmerising, chromatic compositions demonstrate the artist’s aptitude for illustrating complex emotions around mortality.
Ursuţa moved to the U.S. from Romania in 1997. She completed a BA at Columbia University in 2002, and began developing a practice in photography, lost-wax casting, and digital modelling. Ursuţa’s work is currently on show at the 59th Venice Biennale.
Main image: Exhibition view: Andra Ursuţa, Joy Revision, David Zwirner, London (22 September–29 October 2022). © Andra Ursuţa. Courtesy David Zwirner.
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