La Cage Du Corps Jusqu’à L’âme 2016

Sandra Chevrier made this intriguing artwork, La Cage Du Corps Jusqu’à L’âme, and it’s like a window into process. The layering, the tearing, the bringing together of different worlds; it’s all right there on the surface. I’m drawn to the way Chevrier uses the collage elements against the painted portrait. The vibrant colors and bold graphics of the comic book fragments contrast with the flesh tones of the face. The textures are so different, too. You’ve got the smooth, almost airbrushed quality of the skin bumping up against the rough edges of the paper. I keep coming back to the eyes, how they seem to gaze out from behind the mask of printed images. There's a real tension in the work that I find compelling. You might think of someone like Sigmar Polke, who also brought together high and low art in his work. But ultimately, Chevrier's voice is all her own. The piece really embraces the messiness and ambiguity that makes art so interesting.