Give Me One Last Chorus
In Give Me One Last Chorus, Angela Maree Sáenz presents a series of etchings through the digital landscape of a rendered video installation.
The setting created is immediately eerie and otherworldly; situated atop a staggering high plateau. Here, six bare trees stand in a circle, spindly tall and each displaying a mounted print on paper. The words, “you don’t have to…. you don’t have to…. take it,” sing, echoing and repeating in a piercing pitch mirroring the sharp, dagger-like shadows cast from the branches overhead.
The series of prints are examined in a clockwise fashion, as though reading a book wherein you must walk to each page. In magenta ink, they depict a young feminine body, naked and winged. The sound of swords clashing intensifies as the imagery of the prints arcs through a narrative of lovership and pain.
Through the sharp printmaking process of etching into metal, Sáenz gazes into the darkest and most potent feelings of loss. The creatures of the story are both maleficent and angelic, innocent and capable of bloodshed. The titles of each print are incisive. Sáenz agreed, sharing that the titles preceded the work itself in the form of a brief writing, seemingly scribbled in direct transmission.
The video’s resulting chorus of word, imagery, and sound enact a ceremony of rectification through witness. It is also worth noting that the combination of mediums used is a departure for the artist who typically works in oil paint. In this way, Give Me One Last Chorus, signals a courageous and exposed entry into new worlds. The artist is armed with weapons of clarity and distinct selfhood.
The setting created is immediately eerie and otherworldly; situated atop a staggering high plateau. Here, six bare trees stand in a circle, spindly tall and each displaying a mounted print on paper. The words, “you don’t have to…. you don’t have to…. take it,” sing, echoing and repeating in a piercing pitch mirroring the sharp, dagger-like shadows cast from the branches overhead.
The series of prints are examined in a clockwise fashion, as though reading a book wherein you must walk to each page. In magenta ink, they depict a young feminine body, naked and winged. The sound of swords clashing intensifies as the imagery of the prints arcs through a narrative of lovership and pain.
Through the sharp printmaking process of etching into metal, Sáenz gazes into the darkest and most potent feelings of loss. The creatures of the story are both maleficent and angelic, innocent and capable of bloodshed. The titles of each print are incisive. Sáenz agreed, sharing that the titles preceded the work itself in the form of a brief writing, seemingly scribbled in direct transmission.
The video’s resulting chorus of word, imagery, and sound enact a ceremony of rectification through witness. It is also worth noting that the combination of mediums used is a departure for the artist who typically works in oil paint. In this way, Give Me One Last Chorus, signals a courageous and exposed entry into new worlds. The artist is armed with weapons of clarity and distinct selfhood.
Written by Ahnika Wood
Angela Maree Saenz
Give Me One Last Chorus, 2023
Six dry point images
Printed on Somerset 300 gram
Editioned in collaboration with
Alejandra Arias Sevilla
Angela Maree Saenz
Give Me One Last Chorus, 2024
Video Installation
Produced in collaboration with
Brady Cundall
Funded by the Art3C grant through the Regional Arts and Culture Council
