“Echoes of Voynich: Coded Systems in Contemporary Art” curated by Marcie Begleiter
Wonzimer Gallery / 341-B S Avenue 17 / Los Angeles 90031
Sept 13 - Oct 18, 2024
Marcie Begleiter, Timothy C. Ely, Julie Harrison, Christina McPhee, Blue McRight, Snezana Saraswati Petrovic, Fran Siegel, Linnea Spransy
“Echoes of Voynich: Coded Systems in Contemporary Art” was a group show inspired by the heretical Voynich Manuscript. This extraordinary 15th-century herbarium delves into medieval ideas of natural science. It presents a closely observed world using intricate drawings imbued with imagined spirits and anthropomorphized powers, alongside elaborately coded text that has never been deciphered.
In a similar spirit, these eight contemporary artists push back on established orders of classification offering worlds of subjective structures, where closely observed nature is conflated or indistinguishable from highly personal systems. Through painting, drawing, photography, artist books and installation work, “Echoes of Voynich” offers a multi-faceted view of artworks making connections and dissolving boundaries between Flora, Fauna and (Un)earthly Matter.
The exhibit was part of the Getty Institute’s Pacific Standard Time (PST) series, this year focusing on the theme of “Art + Science: Collide.” The accompanying catalo features an essay by the renown artist and scholar Johanna Drucker focusing on the Voynich Manuscript’s enduring fascination for artists, cryptographers, medievalists and anyone who enjoys a literary and artistic mystery.
Installation: Body Series in “Echoes of Voynich: Coded Systems in Contemporary Art” at Wonzimer Gallery, Los Angeles.
