DESMET, Anne RA RE, b. 1964 ~ Babel Tower in Pieces.
Original wood engraving and linocut. Edition of 45, numbered, titled and signed in pencil by the artist. Image size 75 x 108 mm. Paper size 190 x 260 mm. Mounted. Printed in yellow and black.
Anne Desmet became very interested in the aspirational qualities of tower-building in ancient Rome and medieval Italy – and that sparked an ongoing interest in the idea of the Tower of Babel from the Bible and what that story expresses about human aspirations and desires.
Anne Desmet was born and brought up in Liverpool and gained her BFA and MA in Fine Art from Oxford and a Postgraduate Diploma in Printmaking from Central School of Art and Design. In 2011 she became the third wood engraver to be elected as a member of the Royal Academy of Arts in its 250 year history. Desmet’s works are in numerous public and private collections across the World including the Ashmolean Museum and the Whitworth Art Gallery. She has completed several important commissions including pieces for the British Museum, National Gallery, British Library, V & A, Bailliol and Worcester Colleges, Oxford, the Royal Mint and Dulwich College. She has had over 30 solo shows to date including three major retrospectives at the Ashmolean, the Whitworth and the Ex Libris Museum in Moscow.
Desmet is engaged with the evolution of the urban landscape and its testimony to the aspirations and experiences of humanity. Her work ranges from small scale, detailed examinations to sweeping, often fantastical, panoramas.