Monoprint in watercolour with pencil and watercolour pen on Prague Losiny handmade paper
Size: 29.2 x 20.3 cm
Series of 30, each unique, signed and numbered
We have a selection of pre-framed works available to purchase. Please allow 5 weeks from the date of purchase for the shipment or collection of these framed works.
About the work
Kiki Smith has created a group of 30 unique prints exclusively for Whitechapel Gallery on the occasion of its 125th Anniversary.
Since the early 1990s, the natural world, and the animal kingdom in particular, has appeared in Kiki Smith’s work. Smith made her first sculpture incorporating a bird in 1992, and since then, birds have remained a powerful symbol.
Smith’s series of prints, entitled ‘Vesper’ feature this bird motif. The artist has hand produced prints in her studio since 2003. Designated as open editions, each work is unique and the series are typically limited to fewer than 100 impressions, with variations occurring over time. These prints share a basic rubber stamp matrix that is printed in watercolour, with each work retouched with white watercolour as one would retouch traditional photographs. That retouching determines where each star is and how many there are, which varies greatly. The stars are painted over the retouched areas with watercolour pens, the background is drawn using colour pencil.
A photograph has been taken of each impression, which the artist will compile into a pixelated film. Each work is an individual print, but also a single frame of a film.
About the artist
Kiki Smith (b. 1954, Nuremberg) is an American artist, currently living and working in New York and is recognised for her multidisciplinary work that explores the natural world, the metaphysical, and the human body. Since the 1980s, Smith’s work has spanned a variety of mediums such as printmaking, photography, sculpture, glassmaking, drawing, and textiles. Her practice presents psychologically charged works touching on themes of the body, regeneration, mortality, and gender politics, alongside the link between spirituality and the natural world. Smith additionally takes inspiration from the visual culture of the past, such as 18th century scientific renderings of anatomy, as well as folklore, ancient mythology, and religious iconography.
Selected Exhibitions
Kiki Smith has been the subject of several solo and major institutional exhibitions worldwide, including retrospectives at The Museum of Modern Art, New York in 2003 and the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis in 2005. Her work has been included at five Venice Biennales, including the 57th Venice Biennale in 2017. Solo shows for Smith’s work have been presented at Modern Art Oxford (2019), Haus der Kunst, Munich (2018), Belvedere Museum, Vienna (2019), San Francisco Museum of Art (2005), and Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (2006).
Whitechapel Gallery editions are generously donated by the artists. All proceeds from the sale of these works directly support our exhibition and education programmes.
As is traditional in editions publishing, prices will rise as an edition starts to sell out.
For UK Customers, VAT is included in the price shown.
The purchase of this edition is subject to resale restrictions. See Terms and Conditions at point of sale.
£1,800.00
(Members £1,620.00)
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Vesper 1
£1,800.00
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Vesper 2
£1,800.00
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Vesper 3
£1,800.00
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Vesper 4 (Framed)
£2,050.00
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Vesper 5
£1,800.00
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Vesper 6
£1,800.00
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Vesper 7 (Framed)
£2,050.00
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Vesper 8
£1,800.00
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Vesper 9
£1,800.00
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Vesper 10
£1,800.00
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Vesper 11
£1,800.00
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Vesper 12
£1,800.00
-
Vesper 13 (Framed)
£2,050.00
-
Vesper 14 (Framed)
£2,050.00
-
Vesper 16 (Framed)
£1,800.00
-
Vesper 17 (Framed)
£2,050.00
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Vesper 18
£1,800.00
-
Vesper 19
£1,800.00
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Vesper 21
£1,800.00
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Vesper 22
£1,800.00
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Vesper 23
£1,800.00
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Vesper 24
£1,800.00
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Vesper 25
£1,800.00
-
Vesper 26
£1,800.00
-
Vesper 27
£1,800.00
-
Vesper 28
£1,800.00
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Vesper 29
£1,800.00
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Vesper 30
£1,800.00
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Vesper 31
£1,800.00
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Vesper 32
£1,800.00
Works can be purchased with Own Art, allowing you to spread the cost of your purchase over 10 months, completely interest free.
Typical 0% APR. Subject to status. Terms and conditions apply. Applicants must be at least 18 years old. Whitechapel Gallery is a licensed broker of Own Art loans. Registered address: Whitechapel Gallery, 77-82 Whitechapel High Street, London, E1 7QX.
We work with contemporary conservation framers Frame London to provide the best framing options for your edition. Contact us for more information.
