December 30, 2022
Double means more than single
Portrait – double, or single
Double means more than single. This phrase is in stark opposition to the famous saying of the famous architect Ludwig Mies van der Roche - less is more. It has been coined by him as a challenge to the status quo. He used to express the view that a minimalist approach to artistic or aesthetic matters is more effective. This guideline has been a guide for me when creating graphics.
Double portraits, what do they reveal?
Many artists created double portraits. In these paintings, it is often not easy to determine who is the main character, who is the person being portrayed. The presence of two gives the artist opportunities for juxtapositions of forms and colours. Simply put, the artist has more subjects at his disposal. The composition can be more interesting and rich in content. In addition, there is the possibility of challenging the viewer: look and decide. Who is more important? Which figure is figure two? Or - what do they say about themselves through their composition, through the situation they create?
In my graphics, the forms permeate each other. Sharp-edged cracks form on the lines of their intersection. One would like these to be harmonious combinations. Life is full of different situations. Some of them must be described with sharp forms. People are close to each other but as outliers. These ambiguous situations are of interest to the artist. Simplicity and unambiguity are not intriguing, they can sometimes be boring. And above all, it is far from the truth about life. Life is a game full of ambiguous situations.
Watch my film about Double Portraits
Featured In This Article
Artworks
Continue Reading
More From the Studio
Jul 27
Before printing, on the press
In 1998 I wanted to place two figures in a landscape, and it would not work. Then I picked up a pair of scissors and began cutting the matrix away. What emerged from under the blades became the Human series — and taught me that form is the architecture of every work.
Jul 17
Who Carries the Woman, Who Carries Everyone?
There is a word we reach for when we want to say the highest thing about a woman. Not beautiful, not accomplished, not kind — though we mean all of those. We say: superwoman. I have been thinking about that word for a long time.
Jul 6
Supergirl – Woman of Tomorrow
The woman in this painting faces two directions at once — present here and there, needed in both. A monotype-and-collage reflection on the word "superwoman": who invented it, who it serves, and whether women ever asked to be super.
Interested in Jolanta's work? Browse the gallery or get in touch.