Maria Bartuszová at Tate Modern

I can honestly say that I’ve never seen anything like Maria Bartuszová’s work before.

Maybe because I had so little time besides working on commissions and childcare, maybe because of that I had the idea , while playing with inflatable balls, to blow liquid plaster into a balloon.

Maria Bartuszová

Looking at her pieces from the 1960’s and 70’s, the (mostly) smooth plaster is formed into intriguing shapes that curve and creep. There are no straight lines, the work is strangely sensual and has an obvious connection to nature.

In the 1980’s Bartuszová started to burst the balloons that she had always used to create her smooth shapes. The result is incredible, creating fractured forms (many resembling egg shells) that have been smashed open and then tied up with string.

As impressed as I was walking around the exhibit at the Tate Modern, Baruszová’s (1936 - 1996) work has stayed with me. I often find myself thinking of the plaster squashed in between blocks of wood, and how her work begins to resemble people as the plaster folds both over and under the rope she has added.

Having recently been extended from April to the end of June, if you can, go and experience it for yourself at the Tate Modern.


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Philippa James: Girlhood at The North Wall

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Jenni Fagan: Library of Bones at Summerhall