Tough Read 

Iwo Zaniewski made this piece, called 'Tough Read,' using pastel on paper. Here, the texture and feel of pastel create a sense of warmth and domesticity. Zaniewski has employed a dry medium to convey a scene of quiet contemplation. You can almost feel the chalky residue left on the paper, a testament to the artist's hand. The strokes of pastel define the form, filling the two-dimensional surface with depth and volume to create a rich and inviting atmosphere. Notably, this work elevates a quotidian moment through a labor-intensive process. While the subject—someone lost in a book—is familiar, the medium transforms it. It invites us to consider how an artist’s choice of materials and their skilled application can elevate the everyday into something profound and beautiful. It makes you wonder, doesn’t it, how so much labor went into evoking such a still, restful scene.