In January, I visited Polish artist Monika Weiss in her New York studio, and we talked about the lamentation project and a few others she’s worked on recently. Weiss, who is in her early fifties, dresses in black and has a lovely pale, oval face. Her dark hair is wrapped tightly behind her ears so it almost looks as though she wears a Commedia dell’arte skullcap. Not a sad clown but a transdisciplinary artist, Weiss has built a reputation for installations that include drawings of her own body, photographs, rhythmic movement, video, synthesized music (combining ambient sounds, the vocalization of a male soprano, and fragments of Baroque music, which she alters, chops up, and sometimes plays backwards), as well as simple objects or props such as books, scarves, and bandages.A decade ago, Weiss drew attention for performances in which she videotaped her naked body immersed for hours in a large chalice of water or in which she slithered, rolled, and slowly dragged herself (followed by some students) along gigantic sheets of white canvas, leaving behind charcoal and crayon marks or traces of ink and water. Using her tortured (or enraptured) body she explored birth, death, and private and public space. Art critic Benjamin Genocchio, who praised the performances for their courage and creativity, said, “If you try to think rationally about these artworks, you will give yourself a headache.”
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