Rena 

Sofia Bonati’s drawing, "Rena", presents us with a portrait of a woman and a dog. Here, Bonati skillfully uses the visual language of portraiture to ask: How do we understand ourselves through our relationships with others? The woman’s stylised features and the dog-like ears attached to her hat, blur the boundaries between human and animal. In its exploration of identity, the image evokes a kind of shape-shifting where normative boundaries that separate and define us become wonderfully porous. As the woman tenderly holds the dog, a subtle, emotional exchange seems to occur; who comforts whom? Both figures appear vulnerable. The minimal use of color draws our attention to the details of their expressions and the intimate exchange of the embrace. Bonati asks us to consider what it means to identify, care for, and perhaps even transform into, those we love.