Nicky Hoberman
(South African, b.1967)
Whoopee Pie III
Collection of the Artist
Executed on 29 and 30 September in London, the present work is unique and is from a series of 22 monotypes that make up the artists’ first significant print project and relate to her Disguise series of paintings and drawings.
Monotype etching drawn by hand and printed with Charbonnel etching inks from a stainless steel plate, a fine, fresh impression, the full sheet, printed on Hahnemuhle Baryta 350gsm bright white paper, signed, dated, titled and annotated “1/1” in pencil by the artist, printed by the artist with the assistance of Peter Kosowicz at Thumbprint Editions, London, published by World House Editions, Middlebury, Connecticut, in fine condition, unframed
Notes:
Like most of her protagonists, the figures in Nicky Hoberman’s works come across with strong stances, holding their ground. They are outwardly tough, often staring at you with an air of defiance. Yet these young figures, most often girls, hide their inner sweetness behind this facade. The artist likes to play with titles and the present work is no different from any other.
Whoopee Pie III plays off the strong stance of the knowing, looking figure. The title is a double entrende, as the “whoopie pie” cake is a household favorite of the artists’ young daughter. In spite of being allergic to eggs, flour and dairy, she gleans absolute pleasure from leafing through her mother’s cook books and loves the sound of the name “whoopie pie,” literally “whooping” with delight as she chants the words over and over again like a magic incantation. The figure in Whoopee Pie III is not necessarily the artist’s daughter, but rather the artists’ means of engendering the outward emotion of the push-pull effect of wanting and being denied through the body language and facial features of her protagonists.
Nicky Hoberman is not interested in likenesses and she is not a portraitist in the traditional sense. What appear as portraits are merely states of emotions or expressions and the artists’ way of defining the people, young or old, within her world.