Gates of the Body

The relationship between corporeality and subjectivity has long attracted the attention of philosophers. The contrast between what we call the surface of the body and its hidden interior has repeatedly provoked reflections on the nature of human identity — on the tension between what is visible and what remains unseen. From this perspective, particularly intriguing are the threshold points of the body — the so-called gates leading into its interior.

This series of drawings focuses on one of such places: the ear. A fragment of the body usually overlooked in the classical iconography of portraiture becomes here the central motif of the image. The ear is shown in extreme close-up, observed with almost surgical precision.

The realism of the depiction is nevertheless covered with an intense drawing matter. Layers of charcoal build a dense, almost organic texture. This distinctive, at times almost fairy-tale-like drawing tissue does not deform the anatomy but rather settles upon it, intensifying the sense of corporeality and material presence.

Folds of skin, recesses and subtle tensions of the surface become the field of the drawing’s activity. A fragment of the body begins to function as an autonomous landscape of forms — a place where the surface meets the interior.

The ear appears here as a particular gate of the body — a threshold between what is external and what remains hidden within.

Works from this series received international recognition. One of them — “The Gate” — was awarded the First Prize in the international charcoal drawing competition during the International Triennial of Drawing and Graphics in Bangkok, which brought together 940 artists from 32 countries.