2022 Catalogue Archive

In a career that spans over 40 years, Ursula von Rydingsvard has become known for sculptures with an elemental and mysterious presence. Though known primarily for her monumental, laminated wood sculptures displayed in public spaces, von Rydingsvard also makes works on paper from materials like cedar, resin, lambswool, pulp, silk, and handmade paper that are entirely sculptural in their materiality and composition. In this untitled work from 2019, the artist layers strips of silk scarf impregnated with black pigment in a manner similar to how she laminates the layers of wood in her large sculptures. True to von Rydingsvard’s sensitivity to the physicality of her chosen materials, the texture and weave of the silk becomes paramount in this striking work that is both sensual and primal. Von Rydingsvard’s work is in the permanent collections of over 50 public collections, among them MoMA, New York; Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City; and SFMoMA, San Francisco.