Editing Cathy de Monchaux

{{short description|British sculptor (born 1960)}}
{{BLP sources|date=November 2018}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2017}}
{{Infobox artist
| honorific_prefix =
| name             = Cathy de Monchaux
| honorific_suffix =
| image            = <!-- -->
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| caption          =
| native_name      =
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| birth_name       = <!-- only use if different than name -->
| birth_date       = 1960
| birth_place      = [[London, United Kingdom]]
| death_date       = <!-- {{Death date and age|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} -->
| death_place      =
| resting_place    =
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| nationality      = British
| education        = [[Camberwell School of Art]], BA<br>[[Goldsmiths, University of London]], MA
| alma_mater       =
| known_for        = [[Sculpture]]
| notable_works    = Work in progress
| style            = Post-modern, juxtaposing opposites
| movement         =
| spouse           =
| awards           = [[Turner Prize]] nomination
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'''Cathy de Monchaux''' (born 1960) is a British [[sculpture|sculptor]].

==Early life and education==
Born in London, daughter of the sculptor [[Paul de Monchaux]], de Monchaux earned her [[Bachelor of Arts|BA]] at the [[Camberwell School of Art]] (1980–1983) and an MA at [[Goldsmiths College]], University of London (1985–1987).<ref>[https://artuk.org/discover/artists/de-monchaux-cathy-b-1960 "Cathy de Monchaux"] [[Art UK]]. Retrieved 6 January 2024.</ref>

==Style and career==
Her [[sculpture]]s use materials such as glass, paper, metal, fur and leather. Her works juxtapose seductive, soft elements, sometimes associated with strongly sexual overtones, with harder materials, often spikey or in some way appearing to constrain the softer parts, resulting in work which is both sensual and threatening. Her 1997 exhibition at the [[Whitechapel Gallery]] in particular made reference to organic forms (crustacea, fossils), animals, erotic and fetishistic imagery, turn of the century decorative traditions, architectural detailing and saintly relics.<ref>Pennina Barnett, [https://www.ktpress.co.uk/pdf/nparadoxaissue7_Pennina-Barnett_4-11.pdf "Materiality,Subjectivity & Abjection in the Work of Chohreh Feyzdjou, Nina Saunders and Cathy de Monchaux"], ''n.paradoxa'': international feminist art journal online, ''7'', July 1998, pp.4-11 {{ISSN|1461-0434}}</ref>

She won a Steinberger Group Award in 1988 and the London Arts Individual Artist's Award in 1989.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/collection/artists/de-monchaux-cathy-1960|title=Cathy De Monchaux {{!}} Artists {{!}} Collection {{!}} British Council − Visual Arts|website=visualarts.britishcouncil.org|access-date=2019-03-13}}</ref>

De Monchaux's work from the early 1990s was often characterised by the combination of red velvet and steel in simple and strong constructions, but later works have tended to move towards lighter colours and a more ornamental approach.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://visualarts.britishcouncil.org/collection/artists/de-monchaux-cathy-1960|title=Cathy De Monchaux {{!}} Artists {{!}} Collection {{!}} British Council − Visual Arts|website=visualarts.britishcouncil.org|access-date=2019-03-13}}</ref>

De Monchaux was shortlisted for the [[Turner Prize]] in 1998. She currently{{when|date=November 2018}} lives in London and is a part-time teacher at the [[Slade School of Art]]. However, she has exhibited in the United States almost as much as, if not more than, she has in England.{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}

In her recent work, such as ''The Raft'' (2016) and ''State Secrets'' (2014)'','' de Monchaux has concentrated more on subjects such as battles, unicorns and imagery confusing fauna, mineral and flora.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cathydemonchaux.com/|title=Cathy de Monchaux|language=en-GB|access-date=2019-03-13}}</ref>

In ''Sweetly the Air Flew Overhead, Battle with Unicorns'' (2007-8), the work shows small soft sculptures of riders on unicorns entangled in string, cloth and tree figures. It is reminiscent of [[Paolo Uccello|Uccello]]'s ''Battle of San Romano'' series where distinct horses, lances and knights celebrate human control and clarity, not least in the painter's obsessive use of perspective. By contrast, de Monchaux depicts a battle with spike-helmet knights riding unicorns that struggle in a chaos of things: to be in a battle is to be inside a mess.{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}

De Monchaux herself has mentioned recognising an unconscious allusion here to the [[Iraq War]].{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ArtistWorks?cgroupid=999999961&artistid=2354&page=1 Works in the Tate Collection]
*[https://elephant.art/deep-woods-cathy-de-monchaux/ "Deep in the Woods with Cathy de Monchaux"]

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[[Category:1960 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century British sculptors]]
[[Category:20th-century English women artists]]
[[Category:21st-century British sculptors]]
[[Category:21st-century English women artists]]
[[Category:Alumni of Camberwell College of Arts]]
[[Category:Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London]]
[[Category:English women sculptors]]
[[Category:Sculptors from London]]
[[Category:20th-century British women sculptors]]
[[Category:21st-century British women sculptors]]
[[Category:British contemporary artists]]