Anna Du Toit b. 2001
Watchmen (Right), 2025
Oil paint on cotton paper, mounted on a light wooden board
30 x 25 x 4.5 cm
Watchmen is the result of an extended process of revision. Cut, repainted, and re-evaluated over two years, the work centres on two figures: one in quiet adoration; the other, larger...
Watchmen is the result of an extended process of revision. Cut, repainted, and re-evaluated over two years, the work centres on two figures: one in quiet adoration; the other, larger and elevated, appears to hold power but carries no real authority—only a quiet inertia. Their relationship resists resolution. Both watch, both are watched. Nothing moves.
My subjects are adorned and made to feel monumental, only to have that presence undone through expression and the intentional use of delicate materials such as the porcelain, brittle orchids, and ghostly surfaces. This sensibility emerged as the work’s own material (paper) began to falter over time, its fragility prompting repeated attempts at preservation, which in turn shaped the way the piece evolved.
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