Holding Infinity

To see a world in a grain of sand

And heaven in a wildflower

Hold infinity in the palm of your hand

And eternity in an Hour

– Excerpt from William Blake’s “Auguries of Innocence” (c.1803)

Inspired by a 19th c. poem by English artist and poet William Blake, Natasha Zupan’s new body of work entitled “Holding Infinity” asks us to stretch our imagination and experience a stirring connection with the universal, divine light that surpasses understanding.

In this series, we find new worlds of meaning hidden in details and explore how they evolve and shift as we encounter them.

“I spend a lot of time in nature looking at horizons, sunsets, rock formations, starry nights, and moonlight. I memorize the fleeting colors before me, and then, in my studio recreate and “capture“ the light through both my imagination and my collage technique. I use an array of materials including antique fabrics, 24k gold leaf, discarded books, beeswax, oil, pigments, and more. I interpret the dynamism of nature combined with the history and inherent value in these recycled articles.

For me, collage is not about translating a world that already exists, but about entering a different universe: a timeless, tactile world of sensation and overlapping memory. It is made with both hands and loaded with real experiences and passions — both past and present.

“Holding Infinity” delves into nature’s essential, minute details and their indelible significance to our human experience.”

CLOCKWISE FROM UPPER LEFT: Holding Infinity 10, Mixed media on wood panel (acrylic, pigment, 24k gold leaf, and oil); Holding Infinity 9, Mixed media on wood panel (acrylic, pigment, wax, gold paint, and oil); Holding Infinity 11 Mixed media on wood panel (acrylic, pigment, silk, and oil), Holding Infinity 13, Mixed media on wood panel (acrylic, pigment, 24k gold leaf, and oil), 18” x 15” Each.

TOP ROW (LEFT TO RIGHT): Holding Infinity 20, Mixed media on canvas (pigment, encaustic wax, 24k gold leaf, and oil); Holding Infinity 26, Mixed media on canvas (embroidered fabric and oil); Holding Infinity 21, Mixed media on canvas (pigment, 24k gold leaf, and oil); Holding Infinity 32, Mixed media on canvas (fabric, glass, and oil), 9.5” x 7.5” Each

MIDDLE ROW (LEFT TO RIGHT): Holding Infinity 27, Mixed media on canvas (embroidered fabric and oil); Holding Infinity 31, Mixed media on canvas (fabric, glass, and oil); Holding Infinity 24, Mixed media on canvas (fabric and oil); Holding Infinity 28, Mixed media on canvas (fabric and oil), 9.5” x 7.5” Each

BOTTOM ROW (LEFT TO RIGHT): Holding Infinity 29, Mixed media on canvas (fabric, encaustic wax, and oil); Holding Infinity 25, Mixed media on canvas (fabric, moon gold leaf, and oil); Holding Infinity 22, Mixed media on canvas (fabric, pigment, encaustic wax, and oil); Holding Infinity 33, Mixed media on canvas (fabric, moon gold leaf, and oil), 9.5” x 7.5” Each

“Natasha Zupan’s work is the closest thing I know to the alchemy of butterflies. She doesn’t play the conceptual games that freeze contemporary art, but instead with the narrative and sensitive poetry of life… Natasha’s sensibility renders a synesthetic world of connections with the settings of life… Natasha’s art evolves in the present and future due to a tension created from her living experience and her resistance not to deny the findings of great Masters…the quality of her work comes from a natural intuition of the processes of metamorphosis.”

– Excerpt from “Adaptation/Countershading” by art critic and author Felipe Hernandez