David Krut Projects Artspace, New York is pleased to present “The River Beneath the River: Women Artists and the Human Figure in Nature,” an exhibition of work created largely at David Krut Workshop (DKW). The included works locate spirituality in feminine connections with nature, depicting human figures in harmony with the natural environment.
Writer Clarissa Pinkola Estés discusses an inherently feminine connection to nature, one which allows us to connect with myths, fairy tales, and folklore of times gone by. This can be done by reaching a place between worlds, a “collective unconscious,” where “visitations, miracles, imaginations, inspirations, and healings” can occur: “Each woman has potential access to Río Abajo Río, this river beneath the river.” She arrives there through the “intense altered consciousness” brought on by creative work, and “much of what occurs in this ineffable world remains forever mysterious to us.”
A “river beneath a river” relates to the psychoanalytic practice of using a “stream of consciousness” to access the unconscious, and wider connections between femininity, the unconscious, and bodies of water. Among various cosmogonies, parallels exist between these ideas: “the sea is the favorite symbol for the unconscious, the mother of all that live,” and has been “considered a primal uterus, the source of all life.”
The artists in this exhibition also draw inspiration from (often ancient) cosmogonies, allowing their scenes to take on a mythological significance. Part of this is related to the allegorical, yet loosely feminine nature of the figures they depict, who seem to be free of specificity, instead uniting with and drawing strength from the flora and fauna around them. Discussing her etching Wolf Cave, Deborah Bell states: “The cave and the open expanse are about the inner and the outer, the womb and the world.” These artists look inwards, underscoring the value of a spiritual understanding that embraces the inevitable darkness, mystery, and depth of nature and of the human experience.
Artists such as Bell and Nthabiseng Kekana aim to act as conduits for these ideas, depicting a communion between humans and nature that goes beyond the visual. Diane Victor’s work often depicts interactions between human and animal figures, sometimes playfully and other times with a stunning gravity. Heidi Fourie’s gestural compositions illustrate spiritually compelling human interactions with nature, where figures often seem to dissolve into their surroundings.
These works tap into natural desires to forge connections with nature and to have faith in its power. Each in their own way, these artists take a distinctly feminine perspective that works to unify through spiritual understanding. “The River Beneath the River: Women Artists and the Human Figure in Nature” brings together depictions of a spiritual quest, aiming not towards objective knowledge, but towards deeper communion with one’s surroundings.
The River Beneath the River: Women Artists and the Human Figure in Nature
