Dara Vandor "Agatha"

Dara Vandor "Agatha" 2018

Dara Vandor is known for her photorealistic drawings of lingerie. Working exclusively in crosshatched pen strokes, she is interested the intimate gestures of lace, satin and velvet, and how these materials and their uses are reflected in the delicate image-making process. Vandor’s process explores desire, femininity and memory and seeks to incite viewers’ fantasies and curiosity of love and lust. She received a Bachelor of Arts in art history from McGill. Her work is held in public and private collections in North America and Europe, and has been exhibited in London, Los Angeles, Toronto and Montreal. Vandor’s work has been featured in publications including Harper's Bazaar, The Telegraph, Interior Hong Kong, Square Mile, The Handbook, Sharp and Ask Men. Vandor was also an exhibiting artist in The Untitled Space shows "SECRET GARDEN: The Female Gaze on Erotica", and “(Hotel) XX” exhibition at SPRING/BREAK Art Show 2018.

Artist Statement: What is it about lingerie that has the power to transform, to excite? What is it about a few scraps of lace and silk that can whip us into a frenzy to possess it, to display it, even just to glimpse it? Small and mostly hidden, seen only by ourselves or through intimacy, lingerie is simultaneously able to conceal, contain, perform and delight. It is my hope that these drawings can remind us of past loves or desires yet to be explored. Perhaps they can remind us of who we would like to be, or what we attempt to cover up. Much like works of art, lingerie can occupy spaces of both function and fantasy. For me, this makes it an ideal subject through which to explore desire, femininity and memory. Through this series of drawings, an effort has been made to render that most personal portrait — with the intimacy of the private simultaneously shared.