Cathy de Monchaux

Cathy de Monchaux was born in London in 1960. She studied at Camberwell School of Art, London (1980-83), and at Goldsmiths College, London (1985-87). In her sculpture, Cathy de Monchaux combines opposites. Hard and rough contrast with smooth and soft, as she places brass and steel against leather and velvet. The forms also work in opposition, with spikes or…

Cathy de Monchaux was born in London in 1960. She studied at Camberwell School of Art, London (1980-83), and at Goldsmiths College, London (1985-87).

In her sculpture, Cathy de Monchaux combines opposites. Hard and rough contrast with smooth and soft, as she places brass and steel against leather and velvet. The forms also work in opposition, with spikes or jagged edges contrasting with sumptuous curves and padded surfaces. Her imagery is sexual, hinting at the bordello and all that it voluptuously implies. The harshness and softness of nature which simultaneously attract and repel - the Venus fly-trap in action - are both present in the unspoken danger.

As the substance of de Monchaux's work becomes more complex, more vivid, the linear motifs recall Islamic architecture. Trapped between two thick sheets of glass, drawings on a translucent ground are at the same time studies and objects. The decorative clamps and bolts which hold the glass together are the brutality; the fluid line is the grace. In recent installations she has added ephemeral elements such as patterns of powder or dust which appear as shadowy traces of her sculptural forms. These traces add a sense of history and of decay.

Cathy de Monchaux was shortlisted for the Turner Prize in 1998. She exhibits regularly, particularly in Paris, and early in 1996 had a one-person exhibition at the Sean Kelly Gallery in New York. She had a major solo exhibition at the Whitechapel Gallery, London, in 1997 and further exhibitions in New York in 1998-99.

Cathy de Monchaux lives and works in London, and teaches part-time at the Slade School of Fine Art, University College, London.