pastel, paper; 70 x 50 cm;
Signed, dated and described at bottom of composition: 10 - Touching the Devil 3 June 1982, g. 8.00 Natalia LL
Provenance:
Private collection, Poland
Work exhibited:
States of Concentration by Natalia LL, Art Rytel Gallery 17.05.2025 - 07.06.2025, Warsaw.
Work reproduced:
States of Concentration by Natalia LL [exhibition catalog], Warsaw 2025, p. 54 (color ill.)
The series of pastels on paper entitled "Touching the Devil" (dated primarily from 1982-1984), is a unique record of the artist's states of consciousness that accompanied her séances and performance activities. They also resulted in photographs and drawings. In the 1980s, Lach-Lachowicz was engaged in recording altered states of mind, performing experiments on her own psyche and perception. These provocative activities were an attempt to artistically confront what is irrational and not fully controlled, and thus perceived as the dark, dark side of our psyche (fears, obsessions, anxiety). The offered works attract attention with expressive, quickly laid patches of color. The dates and times that appear in the titles of the pastels refer to specific séances - treated as one-off, strictly defined events. The series is part of the artist's long-standing project, in which her own body, psyche and experience become the main field of research and artistic exploration (e.g., "Consumer Art" and "Dreams").
Initially, the sessions were private, during which the artist made photographs, drawings and paintings. In 1983, the series was shown publicly as an exhibition and performance "Touching the Devil" at BWA in Lublin. Natalia LL constructed a symbolic space in the gallery, where, surrounded by, among other things, expressive red drawings, she experimented on borderline states of the psyche.
