Introduction
Masha Ryskin (Providence, RI) and Serge Marchetta (Montréal, QC), met at a residency in France and have been working jointly since 2010. Their collaborations have been featured in solo and group exhibitions in Canada, the United States, Finland, Norway, Slovakia, Italy, the Netherlands and Israel. Most recently, their work was reviewed in Art New England.
Their work is in various public and private collections, such as the Maison de la culture Maisonneuve’s permanent collection in Montréal. Upcoming projects include an invitation only visual artist residency at the Pouch Cove Foundation in Newfoundland, and exhibitions at the Overlap Contemporary Art Center in Newport, Rhode Island and the Maine Jewish Museum in Portland, Maine.
![Memory II, mixed media, 90 cm x 76cm, 2023 © Masha Ryskin | Serge Marchetta](https://montrealserai.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/01-marchetta-ryskin-memory-II-mixed-media-90cm-x-76cm-2023-.jpg)
The artists’ approach, in their own words
We have been working together for 12 years. Our practice stems from investigations of memory, a sense of place, and displacement.
We are interested in the memory of a place evidenced by traces of human presence in a landscape, whether urban or rural.
![Memory III, shelf and yarn, 15 cm x 100 cm x 7 cm, 2023 © Masha Ryskin | Serge Marchetta](https://montrealserai.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/02marchetta-ryskin-artist-book-Memory-III-shelf-yarn-15cm-x-100cm-x-7cm2023.jpg)
Utilizing a variety of materials and processes, we manipulate space through the use of drawing, mixed media and video. In our video work, we explore subtle shifts in movement that occur in space over time.
![Detail from Memory III © Masha Ryskin | Serge Marchetta](https://montrealserai.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/03marchetta-ryskin-Memory-III-detail-1600x1003.jpg)
Working with landscape architectural elements, we invite the viewer to be aware of the subtleties of our surroundings.
![Memory VI, two shelves, yarn and artist book, 40 cm x 7 cm x 7 cm, 2023 © Masha Ryskin | Serge Marchetta](https://montrealserai.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/04marchetta-ryskin-Memory-VI-two-shelves-yarn-artist-book-40cm-x-7cm-x-7cm2023--1600x735.jpg)
Our current practice deals with the ephemeral ambiguity and uncertainty of the human condition.
![Fleeting memory, artist book, shelves and yarn, wall dimensions variable, shelf size 15 cm x 7 cm, 2023 © Masha Ryskin | Serge Marchetta](https://montrealserai.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/05marchetta-ryskin-Fleeting-Memory-artist-book-shelves-yarn-wall-dimensions-variable-shelf-size-15cm-x-7cm2023-1600x915.jpg)
We work symbiotically and simultaneously, with collaborative input on all decisions. Sometimes we take turns in the process of completing a project; other times we divide the tasks. Our practice is at times meticulously planned, and at other times more intuitive.