About the work

This work is part of the series Figures, which consists of drawings of all the shapes within ordinary stencils of circles and ellipses. With minimal compositional intervention, the work explores the visual language of geometry and evokes scientific illustrations. In Figures: Saturn, two shapes have been rendered using such stencils to, alongside the title, invoke the image of the planet. However, the drawing remains somewhat more ambiguous in its representation than most of the images we usually receive from astronomy’s ever-increasing visual archive.

My work explores human’s fascination with outer space and the tools that we use to explore, perceive and represent the places that lie on (and beyond) the threshold of our natural senses.  It explores how astronomical depictions affect the way we relate to remote places and how art can provide alternative readings and ways of knowing.

Date and country of birth

1982, ES>

About the artist

Hondartza Fraga (b. 1982, Cabanas, A Coruña) lives and works in Leeds. Graduated with a BA (Hons) Fine Art from The University of the Basque Country (2005); and MA Fine Art from Sheffield Hallam University (2007). Fraga is studying for a Practice-led PhD at the School of Design at the University of Leeds funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council through an award from the White Rose College of the Arts & Humanities (WRoCAH). Residencies include Rethinking Cotman, Leeds Art Gallery, Leeds (2017); Jodrell Bank, Barnaby Arts Festival, Macclesfield (2016); Leverhulme Trust, Maritime Historical Studies Centre, University of Hull (2013); Occursus, based at Site Gallery, Sheffield (2011); and LKV, Trondheim, Norway (2010). Select solo exhibitions include Not for Navigation, Grimsby Minster, Grimsby (2018); Clever Beasts Invented Knowing, ArteSantander 2019, Espacio Alexandra, Santander (2018); Irresistible Distance, School of Design, University of Leeds, Leeds (2017); Distancia Irresistible, Biblioteca Central de Cantabria, Santander (2017); From Dark Matter to White Noise, Barnaby Arts Festival, Macclesfield (2016); and The Sea Full Stop, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester (2015). Select group exhibitions include Cosmic Perspectives, Ugly Duck, London (2018); Truth and Fantasy, Chrysalis Arts touring exhibition (2018); Miniature World, Castlefield Gallery, Manchester (2016); Del Azul Mar al Negro Abismal, Museo Marítimo del Cantábrico, Santander (2015); and The Whole Wide World, The International 3, Manchester (2015).