Becky Margonelli is an assemblage artist working with found paper. As a child of hand-made artisan furniture makers, Becky grew up steeped in communal traditional craft culture on a remote farm in Maine. She received a BFA in sculpture from Bard College, studying with Kiki Smith, Jacob Grossberg and Vito Acconci. Working in many different mediums including plastic and clay, she became fascinated with minimalism and repetition influenced by artists like Eva Hesse and Agnes Martin. In 2000, she received an MA from Pratt Institute in industrial design before returning to art-making with a reassessment of the material conditions and status of art. She was based on the lower east side of New York City, before moving to Istanbul in 2019.
Becky Margonelli's current work in paper reflects her fascination with order and patterns in nature and biology as well as a perceived lack of pattern, uncertainty and impermanence combined with orderly repetition. Her pieces are made of tightly rolled strips of found discarded paper--junk mail, newspaper and copier paper. The coils are glued to create dense patterns and textures, mostly monochromatic with subtle color variations based on the printing on the paper. Her work contrasts rectilinear grid systems with biological forms creating visual algorithms that mimic mass production while echoing the natural origins of her paper materials. The process of deciding on value for an object interests Becky--The paper used initially has value as a source of news or advertising and then after its read it's worth nothing, just garbage or it's small value as a recyclable. These raw materials are a primary part of the process-oriented dimension of her work.
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Becky Margonelli's current work in paper reflects her fascination with order and patterns in nature and biology as well as a perceived lack of pattern, uncertainty and impermanence combined with orderly repetition. Her pieces are made of tightly rolled strips of found discarded paper--junk mail, newspaper and copier paper. The coils are glued to create dense patterns and textures, mostly monochromatic with subtle color variations based on the printing on the paper. Her work contrasts rectilinear grid systems with biological forms creating visual algorithms that mimic mass production while echoing the natural origins of her paper materials. The process of deciding on value for an object interests Becky--The paper used initially has value as a source of news or advertising and then after its read it's worth nothing, just garbage or it's small value as a recyclable. These raw materials are a primary part of the process-oriented dimension of her work.
email for more info