This work is a play on Marcel Duchamp’s famous work ‘L.H.O.O.Q’, which itself is a play on Leonardo DaVinci’s ‘Mona Lisa’. In his remix, Duhamp drew a moustache on a cheap postcard of the ‘Mona Lisa’. This was an example of the readymade – an art genre which sees an artist reorientate a mundane, mass produced object as fine art. The medium’s roguish sensibility is reiterated by Duchamp’s title which when pronounced in French, sounds like the vulgar phrase “she’s hot in the ass”. 

Under Shaike Snir, Duchamp’s subversion continues. He applies a Warholian lens to emphasize how the ‘Mona Lisa’ has been commodified, reproduced ad infinitum. She is an inspiration for artists, individuals and brands, severed from her original context and like an image dispersed online, absorbed by the audience. Like Warhol's Marilyn Monroe, Snir presents the Mona Lisa as a close cropped head, reproduced in an unnatural technicolour palette.

The works title, 'Mmona, I can’t create I can just multiply', is perhaps a punning nod to how the Mona Lisa has become a pseudo-deity in modern life. She is what we want her to be – a mug, goddess, icon or celebrity. Punny, nuanced and pop arty, this work is also visually exquisite. The sheer technical skill required to produce its colours and textures must be seen in the flesh to be fully appreciated.

An Israeli-Australian artist and printmaker, Snir is represented at the National Gallery of Australia. A master screen printer, he has collaborated with numerous artists. For collectors of figurative prints, those intrigued by art history and with a pop art sensibility, fall under the spell of the Mona Lisa’s enigmatic eye.
 

Shaike SNIR (1952 - )
'Mmona, I can’t create I can just multiply'
screenprint on paper
Edition of 25
Image Size: 71 x 53 cm
Dimensions: 76 x 56 cm
Signed: Signed, titled and inscribed in pencil in margin below image.
Comes with Letter of Provenance

Condition: Very Good: Describes a work of art’s image as Excellent, but may show some small signs of surrounding wear. There are no tears to paper margin or disruption to paint surface. Image is in Fine condition.

© The Artist or Assignee