Object number2023.14
The Wave
Date2004-2008
Artist
Peter Soriano
(American, born 1959)
Printer
Erika Greenberg-Schneider
Printer
Bleu Acier
(Tampa, founded 2003)
CultureFilipino, American, French
MediumPhoto-etching on twelve joined sheets of Japan paper, printed 2022-2023
EditionEdition 3 of 6, plus 1 artists' proof and 1 printer's proof
DimensionsOverall: 105 x 91 3/4 in. (266.7 x 233 cm)
Credit LinePurchase, gift of Mrs. Frederick Ferris Thompson, by exchange
On View
Not on viewPeriod21st c
Classification(s)
Vassar Exhibitions
Label TextIn response to the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Peter Soriano spread acetate sheets across his studio floor and applied wet ink. Working in the confined space, he found himself repeatedly stepping on the sheets before they could dry. These accidental footprints, born of necessity rather than design, became essential to the composition. This printmaking represented another evolution for Soriano, who had moved from large biomorphic sculptures in polyester resin in the 1990s to wall installations using spray paint. Here, his process draws from both Hokusai’s Great Wave off Kanagawa (1831) and Titian’s The Submersion of the Pharaoh’s Army in the Red Sea (1514), seeking what he calls “the finger like grasp of Hokusai’s Great Wave.” The resulting work transforms accident into elegy, where unintended footfalls become as significant as any deliberate gesture.
DescriptionBlack expressive, abstracted vertical strokes of an ink-like wash create waves in the majority of the composition. Undulating outlines of crashing waves and foam are near the upper edge and inky footprints pace up and down the left edge.
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge.
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