Jonathan Monk – Umbilicus and The Void

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Umbilicus and The Void is the third solo show of the last three years (after F.I.N.G.E.R.S. and T.H.U.M.B.) by Jonathan Monk at LOOM Gallery. In the show there are two sculptures made of Carrara marble; one attached to the wall, the other resting on a pedestal.

The wall mounted work is clearly based on a real object, an Ape Piaggio rear flap. This piece is titled The Void and was based on an overheard conversation, when gallery installation crew were discussing whether a Anish Kapoor Void installation would fit in the back of the van. Even nothingness has a relative size and the Ape Piaggio always seemed that it could accommodate almost anything if carefully curated.

Umbilicus is the fifth part of a very large puzzle, an attempt to recreate the full missing figure that Maurizio Cattelan’s L.O.V.E. hand/finger sculpture comes from. The fingers and thumb have already been found and exhibited at LOOM gallery. Instead of moving up the arm, Monk opted for a generation connection, a literal and physical cut. Umbilicus, is a displaced umbilicus or bellybutton - certainly figurative but wildly abstract once removed from its body. The work is based on something we can only imagine, Cattelan’s humongous towering figure. There are also perhaps connections to Kapoor’s marble voids, but this is by chance.