Janine Antoni

I unfold, I infold, 2019

Mixed media gilded with 24 karat gold leaf

Installed: 12 3/4 x 24 3/4 x 7/8 inches (32.39 x 62.87 x 2.22 cm)

Flat: 12 3/4 x 28 1/4 x 7/8 inches (32.39 x 71.76 x 2.22 cm)

Commissioned by The Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, NY.

© Janine Antoni; Courtesy of the artist, Luhring Augustine, New York, and Anthony Meier Fine Arts, San Francisco
Photo: Christopher Burke

“I unfold, I infold” takes its gesture from the outstretched palms of the Virgin Mary. This iconography symbolizes the dispensation of grace and points to Mary as a mediator. Her body is a conduit through which grace is poured and then redirected to us through her open palms. Traditionally, rays extend out from her hands, identifying the Holy Spirit. In the artwork, the palms are painted gold, symbolizing this energy transfer from the body. 

 Growing up Catholic, Antoni often questions the characteristics ascribed to these symbols, wondering how her own womanhood was formed by this female icon. Mary comforts and is merciful. She is the mother of divine grace and the keeper of peace. While these are traits to admire, they stand in contrast to the fact that her body is denied. She is immaculately conceived, which means she is neither the product of sex nor was she allowed it in her lifetime. Even death is denied her; she is assumed into heaven. 

“I unfold, I infold” attempts to give her body back to herself. For in this work, just as she reaches out with all her divine feminine qualities, she also turns inward. To touch one’s thigh is to feel one’s own body and to acknowledge being human. To hold both is to be a divine animal. 

“I open into sky. I fold into myself. I open with light. Myself I touch. I open in grace. I am here.”

“I unfold, I infold” was a part of “I am fertile ground” at Green-Wood Cemetery.