Remnant Natalie Nowotarski

What is it that we find so appealing in the mangled remains of the classical past which we find so aesthetically alluring? We’ll patiently wait and queue and visit museums, navigate crowds just to gawk at the shattered antiquities created by civilisations which are at once so simultaneously familiar and alien. And while there are always those few pristine pieces which have somehow traversed time preserved and relatively intact (or restored to be so), we’re still strangely drawn, more often than not, to the damaged, the broken, and the defaced artifacts from those distant pasts. How has that juxtaposition of the laboriously created idealised form, violently vandalised by the ensuing centuries, become the benchmark of artistic refinement to the point we label it ‘classical’?

In this hauntingly beautiful piece, photographer Natalie Nowotarski (Melbourne) explores this weird obsession of beauty in ruin. In ‘Remnant’, Natalie shows us a truncated headless torso floating appartion-like on its black pedastal, the athletic ivory coloured marble remains of the figure sit distinct from its shadowy surrounds.

Is it because it resonnates with some innate destructive part of our nature, that small corner of our unacknowledged selves which revels in the wreckage of the past? Do we see it as an allegory for our own age, a temper to our hubris, the sculptural equivalent of a momento mori, a reminder of that ultimate truth that all things come to an end.

This piece suits more dark filled spaces where there’s minimal light.

Customers Outside of Australia: We strongly recommend purchasing this piece as ‘Print-Only’ artwork and having it framed locally using non-reflective glass. Unfortunately, this option cannot be provided by TCH due to the associated cost of shipping this fragile material outside of Australia. If you would like to enquire about ‘Print-Only’ artwork pricing, please email the size you are interested in purchasing and your location to [email protected].

Customers in Australia: If you would like to upgrade to a non-reflective glass option, please email the size you are interested in purchasing and your location, including postcode, to [email protected] for a customised quote.

Please note: The pricing in the size menu below is fully framed artwork with standard acrylic glass.