Letter to the Mother [left] 1993

Elena del Rivero made this piece, called Letter to the Mother, using graphite on paper. The whole thing is covered in tiny marks, like she's writing without words. Up close, you can see the graphite isn't just shading, it's built up from countless little lines. They’re all horizontal, packed tight, and vary in tone to create the illusion of a handwritten letter without legible script. Some areas are darker, denser, like heavier thoughts pressing down. I love how something so repetitive becomes so expressive. It's like Agnes Martin, but more frantic. You get a real sense of the artist's hand, the time spent, the obsession. It’s this whole world made of tiny, insistent marks, like a visual poem. Like some earlier pieces by Tomma Abts, this pushes drawing toward something architectural in its detail, without losing the softness and touch of the handmade.