LOS ANGELES, CA.- Carol Prusa (USA, b.1956), a graduate of Drake University with a Master degree in painting, currently resides and works in North Carolina, USA. Prusa inherits the silverpoint drawing technique from the Renaissance period, delving into astrophysics to interpret the chaotic interactions of cosmic evolution. Through the meticulous and refined grayscale of silverpoint, Prusa intricately incorporates sculpture forms, portraying the beauty of cosmic anomalies, and has gained recognition for her unique artistic expression. She has received the SECAC Artistic Achievement Award and has been invited to exhibit at the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Letters. Her works are featured in several silverpoint history books, permanently housed in over a dozen museums across the United States, including the Perez Museum of Art in Miami, the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, and the Telfair Museums. She has held major solo exhibitions at various institutions, including the Boca Raton Museum of Art and the Norton Museum of Art.
Fascinated by the "Big Bang" theory since the age of ten, Prusa avidly studied microbiology, pathology, mathematics, and astrophysics, pondering why the universe's complexity is so overwhelming, yet our breathing feels natural, simple, and calm. Since then, science and art intersect in Prusa's work. She states, "I seek to communicate what cannot be seen but felt, the vibrations that are part of us all, including echoes from billions of years ago. Like scientists, I seek new ways to explain our place and manifest the most complete understanding of our world."
The exhibition title, "Expansion Universe," references the theory that at the dawn of time, all matter, energy, time, and space were compressed into a "point" of infinite density, infinite temperature, and infinitesimal volume. Drawing inspiration from this, Prusa transforms cold astrophysics into fine art, expressing the human experience offeeling both insignificant yet deeply connected in the face of a vast, chaotic, and ever-expanding universe. In physics, a singularity is a point of infinite density, such as a black hole or the beginning of a universe. Prusa explains her connection to this concept: "Everything we think we know breaks down and collapses to a single point— a singularity. And it is in this liminal space that I assert a location, at least for the moment, as my world expands—a threshold to teeter on and create my world before plunging to the next. I know that in the next moment what I know (and don’t) will change and that the world I create will be completely different in the next attempt. Each work is a tower of sorts—a construction-download of my brain at a given time, as I seek to sort out what I know and don’t while relishing the questions. My mind is enamored by intimate optical exchanges, working intently with layers of pigments like black micaand stainless steel along with a range of whites and blacks to create physical depth and shimmer with iridescence to evoke the complexity of peering into darkness and light." "Why is there something instead of nothing?" remains the perpetual question— though "nothing" is impossible since "something" exists. How are we possible?"
Silverpoint Drawing: Flourishing during the Renaissance, this ancient technique was favored by masters such as Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael for its delicate precision. Prusa combines this ancient technique with contemporary media—such as sculpting resin, fiberglass, metal foils, and even LED lights—to visualize the chaos of the universe's origin. Art critic Margherita Dessanay observes that Prusa uses art to investigate "the boundless wonders of the universe," creating "a new vision of the powers of the universe in each artwork she makes."
