Linea nigra explores the motherhood ant its allegorical projection through Western Art tradition. A triptych that shows her expansive and syncretic concept of drawing. Since her 'Richard Ford Award' residency in the Museo del Prado in 2015; much of her work is inspired by art history and the classic painters. Her drawings are held in The Royal Collection (including the personal collection of King Charles), the Victoria & Albert Museum, The Rothschild Collection, among others.
Caylus by Martínez Avezuela
The linea nigra appears on the abdomen of many pregnant women from the second trimester onwards. Hormonal changes in their bodies cause the linea alba – a tendinous structure that runs vertically across the abdomen – to transform due to increased production of melanin, the pigment that gives our skin its colour. From the pubic bone to the navel, this line traces a winding path across women’s bodies, which usually fades gradually after childbirth. It is a somatic
Water flowed through the nymphaea like the line runs across the paper in Olivia Kemp’s An Allegory of Motherhood. A line that contains her gesture and reflects her inner self, becoming a sign of identity. This is how it has appeared in Art theory since ancient times, as the origin of artistic expression and contingent upon its meaning. William Hogarth, in The Analysis of Beauty (1753), pointed out that the origin of beauty lies in that simple stroke. His ‘Line of Beauty’ is expressed as an elegant, undulating curve in the shape of an S – linea serpentinata – which embodies movement, vitality and visual pleasure. This line is the main source of beauty in nature and art, and is present in everything from human bodies to landscapes and objects, giving shape to the ideas that the artist expresses on paper.
A conversation between artist Olivia Kemp and lecturer María Cruz de Carlos, where they discuss Kemp’s work:
Olivia Kemp
We are pleased to announce our upcoming collaboration with British artist Olivia Kemp. Linea nigra explores the motherhood ant its allegorical projection through Western Art tradition. A triptych that shows her expansive and syncretic concept of drawing. Since her 'Richard Ford Award' residency in the Museo del Prado in 2015; much of her work is inspired by art history and the classic painters. Her drawings are held in The Royal Collection (including the personal collection of King Charles), the Victoria & Albert Museum, The Rothschild Collection, among others.