About The Work
During her residency at Gasworks, Blanca Gracia explored figures and identities from history and folklore who had been outcasts and expelled from society. As outlaws, they were given the freedom to live outside of social norms and codes but were also to be hunted and killed.
In line with this research, her Gasworks edition depicts a fantastical, otherworldly herbarium titled Mala Hierba ("bad weeds") that comes from the Spanish saying: Mala Hierba Nunca Muere [Weeds Never Die]. Amidst a mass of color and detail are luscious blooms, delicate foliage, animals, and insects all cohabiting equally. However, caught up in the root system are words like faggot (a band of wood), cardo (a thistle), and pansy (flowering perennial), common names that, over time, have mutated into slurs that seek to harm, undermine and repress.
The work borrows the visual language of 17th Century scientific drawings, subverting it into a poignant commentary on the fluidity of language. Gracia reclaims these words, finding their original meaning in an attempt to reduce their harm, instead weaving them into a powerful support system. No matter how many times these weeds may be pulled out, they grow back, stronger and taller.
About Blanca Gracia
6 colour Lithograph print on Somerset Satin White 300gsm
18.70 x 13.78 in
47.5 x 35.0 cm
Signed and numbered by the artist.
About The Work
During her residency at Gasworks, Blanca Gracia explored figures and identities from history and folklore who had been outcasts and expelled from society. As outlaws, they were given the freedom to live outside of social norms and codes but were also to be hunted and killed.
In line with this research, her Gasworks edition depicts a fantastical, otherworldly herbarium titled Mala Hierba ("bad weeds") that comes from the Spanish saying: Mala Hierba Nunca Muere [Weeds Never Die]. Amidst a mass of color and detail are luscious blooms, delicate foliage, animals, and insects all cohabiting equally. However, caught up in the root system are words like faggot (a band of wood), cardo (a thistle), and pansy (flowering perennial), common names that, over time, have mutated into slurs that seek to harm, undermine and repress.
The work borrows the visual language of 17th Century scientific drawings, subverting it into a poignant commentary on the fluidity of language. Gracia reclaims these words, finding their original meaning in an attempt to reduce their harm, instead weaving them into a powerful support system. No matter how many times these weeds may be pulled out, they grow back, stronger and taller.
About Blanca Gracia
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