Between photographs, sculptures, and installations combining the human hand and meticulously selected ecofacts, the Study of Traces series conjures up the idea of ​​a modern ritual. The bodies are marked with plants and stones. The flesh, naturally engraved, is offered to nature.

The human footprints commonly left in the natural environment raise many ethical questions. The artist shows, on the contrary, that the constituent elements of our ecosystems can also easily leave traces on our bodies and, more generally, on our functioning. Through simple gestures and a material relationship to things, a link to nature is (re)built. The printed lines are the result of an interaction between two organic and mineral materials — the skin and the natural elements — which influence each other.

The trace, proof of contact, reveals a memory of touch and of the body whose durability is limited to the elasticity of the skin. These works embrace an open and free idea of ​​sculpture. The idea of ​​a work that only exists totally through contact with the visitor, its symbolic and significant materials, the importance of active participation brings us back to the Theory of Sculpture by Joseph Beuys. This series was acquired by the Antoine de Galbert Foundation to integrate the collections of the Grenoble Museum.

Wiktoria (aka Wojciechowska) works with photography and video and devotes herself to installations using sculpture, plants, and performances documented in situ. The creation of ephemeral objects, traces, and engravings enrich her research on our perception of nature and our relationship to the sacred and to ritual. The artist’s works invite the visitor to create a modern ritual: an imprint of natural elements on the body, ephemeral sculptures on the skin, coming from branches, leaves, and grasses, symbols of entanglement with nature.

Exhibition Details | Location: GALERIE SONO 91 RUE SAINT HONORÉ, 75001 PARIS
Date: 21.01.2022 – 12.03.2022

Credits | Text: Ainhoa Bourgeois (direct translation); Photography: Galerie Sono.