It Divides Absolutely

“It Divides Absolutely” complements Theorem, the collaborative book by artist Antonia Contro and poet Elizabeth Bradfield. Adapted from Theorem as an independent work of art, “It Divides Absolutely” suggests a rift in the world and psyche which “divides, absolutely.”  The words, understated and quiet, fall on either side of a black, embossed vertical line which continues beyond the page, transforming into a cut-away absence, creating shadow and gesturing toward how events reverberate and transform through the passage of time.

“It Divides Absolutely” possesses special resonance in our geopolitical moment: a pandemic, the critical call for change by Black Lives Matter and #MeToo, threatening displays of facism and white supremacy, ecological crises, and more.  This is a turning point, a hinge.  What is on the other side of the divide?  How do we understand the moment of division--what came before, what comes after?  “It Divides Absolutely” invites necessary consideration, meditation, and quiet contemplation.

Title: “It Divides Absolutely”

Year: 2020

Materials: Embossing, Engraving, Laser Cutting on Rives papers

Press: Rohner Press

Edition: 26, 2 Artist Proofs

Please allow two weeks on framed prints to be ready for shipping or pickup.

Antonia Contro is a visual artist whose work ranges from discrete objects to site-specific installations and collaborations that engage artists and practitioners from a wide range of disciplines. Her art explores the nature of knowledge, memory, and time. Contro’s exhibitions include Tempus Fugit at the American Philosophical Society Museum, Ex Libris at the Chicago Cultural Center, Closed|Open at the Newberry Library, and Descry at the Museum of Contemporary Photography. Contro’s work is in the collections of Art Institute of Chicago, Block Museum, Harvard Art Museums, and Museum of Contemporary Art. Contro was a awarded a Rockefeller Foundation fellowship, an Illinois Arts Council fellowship, and a doctorate in humanities honoris causa from Lewis University. 

Elizabeth Bradfield is the author of the poetry collections Once Removed, Approaching Ice, Interpretive Work, and the mixed-genre Toward Antarctica, which pairs her photographs with brief, hybrid essays. Her poems and essays have appeared in The New Yorker, Atlantic Monthly, Orion, and many anthologies. She has been awarded a Stegner Fellowship, the Audre Lorde Prize, and was a finalist for the James Laughlin Award from the Academy of American Poets. Founder and editor-in-chief of Broadsided Press, she works as a naturalist and teaches creative writing at Brandeis University.