The White Paintings | Veronica Ceci

The White Paintings presents textile and paper works

that address themes of labor and gender equity. 

Exhibition Dates: 9/7/2023-09/30/2023

Opening Reception: 9/7/2023 6-8pm

Artist’s talk: 9/21/2023 at 7:30 pm

 Begun in 2018, the White Paintings are an ironic response to the male dominated history of abstract art. Textural elements, such as towels, sheets, and mops, have been sourced directly from the artist’s labor as a professional cleaner. They were what would traditionally be considered a white hue when new. The act of removing dirt from surfaces and absorbing the excretions of the body has painted them. Used in this way until they are literally worn out or too dingy to be functional in a commercial setting, they are then made into artworks. 

As the series has progressed, the pool of textile sources from which the artist has drawn has expanded. Additionally, some works are themselves tools for cleaning, as in WPIV which was utilized as part of the performance FUtility III in 2021. In mixing new materials with old, the artist juxtaposes the dream potential of cleanliness with its unavoidable and imminent failure as the dirt of time accumulates. 

 Pieces in the series have been displayed individually in group exhibitions across the nation at prestigious spaces such as The Contemporary Art Center New Orleans and Austin’s own The Contemporary. This exhibition marks the first time the ongoing series has been exhibited as a single body of work.  

 Veronica Ceci (she/they) has lived and made artwork in Austin since 2004. As an intermedia artist, they use a variety of art techniques and methods, often simultaneously, choosing whichever best serves the story that is being told. The work always has some aspect of narrative or purpose, whether it is looking into American history, working from a social justice perspective, or talking about the artist's background as a low wage laborer or identity as a fat Queer femme and advocating for others who share those experiences. A common thread in all work is an attempt to make conspicuous things that are either long neglected or deliberately hidden. 

Ceci has works in the permanent collections of many institutions including The Library of Congress and The National Women’s History Museum. She has studied at The Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, The Tamarind Institute and Kent State University.