In an interview we did with India Menuez regarding her role in Adinah Dancyger’s upcoming short, Cheer Up Baby, we asked Menuez about the variety of her artistic pursuits, and she summed them up for us succinctly: “I am and always have been most interested in collaborative experiences, which is pretty vast and so, of course, can manifest into all types of media/projects.” The latest way it manifests is the etchings she has created that are on display at Picture Room. While obviously created solely by her, the etching’s subject matter — her close friends — captures the aforementioned spirit of collaborative experience.

As you can see from the photographs of the etchings at Picture Room, the etchings present their subjects in a consistent, beautifully lyrical style. Menuez’s hand works sparsely creating lines only where absolutely necessary, and the result is something romantic (in the sense that they are prints that Keats would happily hang on his wall). The only context we are given is that they are sitting, which allows Menuez to hone her focus on the subjects’ souls.

As a young artist, Menuez pushes back against stereotypes about what media someone of her generation should be working in by opting for the art of etching: a means of production so venerable it predates the mechanical reproduction (arguably). But it should not at all be a surprise that Menuez chose this medium, as the DIY printing potential of etchings continues a Menuez’s ongoing interest in creating and publishing zines.

The exhibition is based have been published in a book published by Open Corner. They are printed by Katsumi Suzuki.