This work is a play on Marcel Duchamp’s famous work ‘L.H.O.O.Q’, which itself is a play on Leonardo DaVinci’s ‘Mona Lisa’. In his remix, Duhamp drew a moustache on a cheap postcard of the ‘Mona Lisa’. This was an example of the readymade – an art genre which sees an artist reorientate a mundane, mass produced object as fine art. The medium’s roguish sensibility is reiterated by Duchamp’s title. When pronounced in French, ‘L.H.O.O.Q’ sounds like a vulgar phrase, “she’s hot in the ass”, that implies sexual restlessness.

Under Shaike Snir, Duchamp’s subversion continues. He applies a Warholian lens to emphasise how the ‘Mona Lisa’ has been commodified, reproduced ad infinitum. She is an inspiration for artists, individuals and brands, severed from her original context and like an image dispersed online, absorbed by the audience. Like Warhol's Marilyn Monroe, Snir presents the Mona Lisa as a close cropped head, reproduced in an unnatural technicolour palette.

The work's title, Demeter, refers to the Ancient Greek goddess of agriculture, marriage and the social order. Punny, nuanced and pop arty, this work is also visually exquisite. The sheer technical skill required to produce its colours and textures must be seen in the flesh to be fully appreciated.

An Israeli-Australian artist, Snir is cited as a master printmaker the National Gallery of Australia and has collaborated with numerous renowned artists including Lin Onus and David Larwill. For collectors of figurative prints, those intrigued by art history and with a pop art sensibility, fall under the spell of the Mona Lisa’s enigmatic eye.
 

Shaike SNIR (1952 - )
'Demeter'
screenprint on paper
Image Size: 71 x 53 cm
Dimensions: 76 x 56 cm
Signed: Signed, titled and inscribed in pencil in margin below image.
Comes with Letter of Provenance

Condition: Very Good: Describes a work of art's image as Excellent, but may show some small signs of surrounding wear to paper or frame. There are no tears to paper margin or disruption to the paint surface.

(c) The Artist or Assignee