Monique Lacey

Monique Lacey's sculptural practice is deeply rooted in the linear forms of her childhood in Holland, acknowledging the classic minimalist grid where architecture finds its foundational shapes.

Lacey's exploration of this familiar geometry is driven by a fascination with the transformative potential of rudimentary materials.

Utilising commercial packaging as her primary medium, Lacey creates structures that blend volume and surface with meticulous craftsmanship. Beginning with flat-packed configurations, these materials undergo a metamorphosis through layers of plaster, paint, resin, rubber, wax, varnish, and pigments, which both bind and reveal the underlying frameworks.

Central to Lacey's artistic approach is a respect for the authenticity of her materials, coupled with deliberate acts of manipulation. Physical processes such as assembly and intentional deformation imbue her works with a spectrum of emotions—from playfulness to aggression—resulting in forms that oscillate between destruction and repair.

Emerging within the context of Minimalism, a movement historically dominated by male figures such as Donald Judd, Lacey diverges by elevating the utility and materiality of everyday objects into profound artistic statements. Rejecting overtly gestural styles associated with Abstract Expressionism, she challenges established norms through her methodological embrace of seemingly destructive gestures.

Lacey's sculptures defy traditional distinctions between surface and form, image and object, thereby disrupting conventional categorizations of sculpture and painting. While honoring Minimalism's ascetic principles and the importance of materiality, her work celebrates decadence in its process, creating richly textured skins that invite contemplation of profound artistic tensions.