Abduction of Europa

Adriana Swierszczek has commented, ‘The common thread in my work is to focus on structure using an invisible grid of measurements, and finding the architecture of objects in space.’ Swierszczek’s drawing comes almost entirely from her imagination with the exception of the figure of the bull, observed from a Paul Manship sculpture of the same title. She builds her closely observed surfaces by employing subtle shades of grey, presenting her figures with sharp, ‘chiseled’ outlines but leaving the light and shadows unresolved. Appropriating the Greek myth of Europa’s abduction, she alters the narrative to suggest Europa’s escape, also invoking a comment on the contemporaneous political situation in Europe.