Ruah Edelstein
Artist
Visitations
Site-specific graphite interventions on wall
No. 1–13 | pigments | room dimensions 10' × 6' (3 × 2 m)Tallinn, Estonia | 2012
Detail № 1
In an old house in Estonia, where I was staying for a couple of nights, time had opened the walls of a room. Beneath the fallen tiles, a raw, terracotta-like surface began to suggest faces—an instance of simulacrum, where perception completes what is not fully there.
With graphite at hand, I followed these appearances, clarifying what the surface was proposing. The act was not entirely without risk: drawing on my hosts’ walls in the middle of the night carried the possibility of being relocated to a hotel the next day. Instead, I was met with generosity. After my departure, my hosts invited a professional photographer and later shared documentation of the work.
With graphite at hand, I followed these appearances, clarifying what the surface was proposing. The act was not entirely without risk: drawing on my hosts’ walls in the middle of the night carried the possibility of being relocated to a hotel the next day. Instead, I was met with generosity. After my departure, my hosts invited a professional photographer and later shared documentation of the work.
Detail № 2
Detail № 3
Detail № 4
Detail № 5
Option № 6
Detail № 7
Detail № 8
Detail № 9
Detail № 10
Detail № 11
Detail № 12
Detail № 13