Miriam Wosk
Big Red, 2008
Jacquard tapestry with hand-applied Swarovski crystals
92 x 65.5 in
edition of 8

Los Angeles-based artist Miriam Wosk creates explosively colorful, densely layered works which explore the diversity and interconnectedness of life on Earth. Her work is known for its ornamental complexity and detail, and is often inspired by dreams; an oneiric, Surrealist impulse reveals itself immediately in Wosk’s striking juxtapositions. By combining familiar anatomical forms, both human and animal, with glittering layers of pattern and ornament, the artist creates imagery which is both elegiac and joyful. The fragile, vulnerable quality of Wosk’s skeletons and organs hints at mortality even as the sensuous exuberance of their surroundings pulses with life. In Big Red, delicate green sea creatures and mysterious, bone-colored organic forms swim in a blood-red ether overflowing with abstract blossoms and droplets, a ground reminiscent of the mille-fleur style of medieval tapestries. The irridescent shimmer of Wosk’s collages and paintings was achieved in Big Red by incorporating gold and silver metallic threads into the tapestry’s weave structure, and via Swarovski crystals hand-applied by the artist, making each piece in the edition unique. – Nick Stone