And then there were 81

In the Studio

Posted on August 23, 2010

After two years of artistic labor, Emma Reyes' monumental sequence of 81 images is finally complete! The piece is hung in the large gallery window and announces our upcoming exhibit And Then..., which showcases sequential art and opens this Thursday at 7:00 pm.

Long-time CE Volunteer Extraordinaire David Weldy worked with Reyes once a week on the series. It began as a single piece (visible in the photo) based on black & white patterns from a book of design forms. A metal template was laid over the surface and Reyes gradually filled in the 81 one-inch squares with her translations of the patterns. Weldy was particularly impressed by the perseverance she showed in the process, as Reyes is almost exclusively a figurative and representational artist who has generally eschewed abstraction.

From this 9 x 9 inch singular work, Reyes generated the 81 separate 4 x 4-inch works that occupy the central wall of the window. Each work mirrors its smaller counterpart, with Reyes sometimes following the earlier work exactly, but often emphasizing features in the larger pieces that were miniscule in the original conception.

Weldy feels that she is very proud of both the work itself and how she stretched herself conceptually and technically as an artist. He also believes that the project could keep going, embroidery, sculpture: the field, and Reyes' talent, is limitless.

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