About the artist: Wonow is a French artist, currently residing and creating in Switzerland. With a profound fascination for the transient nature of the moment, Wonow has cultivated a body of work centered around themes of ephemerality. Drawing from a background in applied arts and design, as well as a fervent love for drawing, Wonow’s oeuvre extends far beyond mere abstract ink and charcoal sketches. Each stroke on the canvas carries not just visual impact but also profound layers of meaning. Yet, these abstract drawings serve as a mere inception point for Wonow’s artistic exploration. Transitioning seamlessly between various mediums including music, photography, film, and performance, Wonow’s artistic journey unfolds as a captivating narrative. Through exposure of the artistic process, Wonow invites the audience to partake in the unfolding of creativity. Each piece becomes a multidimensional tapestry, woven from spontaneous improvisations yet meticulously curated layers.

wonow.art | Instagram: @wo_n_ow

About the artwork: "eux.lui.elle.nous” The Fleeting Nature of the Self, the Other, and the Us

“eux.lui.elle.nous” is an exploration of temporality and the duality of presence/absence. Using the world's thinnest paper, Hidakawashi Tengusho, weighing just 2 grams per square meter, this piece proposes a delicate interplay between light, texture, and movement.

It consists of four panels: the first one is empty, the second shows a woman alone on a bed, the third a man alone on a bed, and the last shows them together. When they are alone, half of the frame is empty, highlighting absence within presence. Suspended from the top, the Hidakawashi Tengusho transforms the installation into a living entity. The panels respond to the slightest air currents, creating movement that evokes the changing dynamics of relationships.

The transparency of the paper allows light to penetrate and move across the images, reappropriating texture in matter and light. This interaction breathes a muted energy into the figures, making them appear almost spectral, forgotten, passing by. In the final act, the panels are set aflame, consuming the delicate figures.

The act of burning not only destroys their physical representation but also underscores impermanence, reminding us of the ephemeral quality of all things, symbolizing the briefness of our intertwined lives and capturing the essence of mortality in our connections. All these stages were intended to embody the themes of impermanence and spontaneity and to embrace randomness and unpredictability, core aspects of an improvisational performative practice.

Based on a "single shot" approach, with no preliminary tests and a single video recording, the project faced numerous technical challenges, as it was intended to be realized in a single move process, and unique in the final result, without editions or artist's copies. The innovation behind this work, printing on such thin paper, and integrating video and fire elements in this delicate medium, align the creation process with the conceptual foundations of the piece.

By redefining our perception of materiality and light, it invites meditation on the transitory beauty of life, love, connection, inevitable decay, and the subtle, often unnoticed changes that occur over time. In contemplating this piece, viewers are encouraged to consider their own experiences of loss, change, and the passage of time. It proposes a reflection on the fragile essence of life and the evolving nature of our bonds.

The use of this unique paper, akin to delicate fabric, enhances the veiled quality of the work and reflects human vulnerability, encouraging the observer to see through the habitual layers of perception. “eux.lui.elle.nous” leaves the audience in a perplexing, elusive observation, yet pertinent in its beauty.

By exploring textures as matter, transparency as evanescence, and temporality as transience, this piece questions and challenges our perceptual habits, encouraging visitors to confront the impermanence of their existence and their relationships with others. The complete piece is available in the blackprint online gallery, blackprint.photo/buy-exclusive-… and the three videos are featured in their "blackprint Phygital Collection" on

https://objkt.com/tokens?search=eux.lui.elle.nous

About blackprint edition: The blackprint edition releases exclusive editions from original antique photograph plates and artworks developed with contemporary artists. The blackprint editions are printed on very selected and rare art paper from Switzerland to Japan.

www.blackprintedition.photo

blackprint gallery / studio: blackprint studio is an innovative fine art printing studio specialized in high-quality black and white prints. We use the black and white monochrome Piezography® Pro system and a wide range of paper from premium digital fine-art inkjet paper to handmade art paper and Japanese washi.

www.blackprint.photo