Rangda Mask and archaeological figures

Rita Simon-Atirnomis

This Surreal ink and wash drawing by Rita Simon, who signed her work using her name, reversed: "Atirnomis." This drawing was deaccessed from the Hirshhorn Museum in New York.

The drawing features a Polynesian Rangda (Ranga) mask in the lower right and a carved African figure with a "framed" inset featuring archaeological and mystical elements.

The Folk Art Museum of Central Texas has the following description: "...a Rangda mask from Bali in Indonesia. The Rangda mask is traditionally carved from the pule (Alstonia) tree and uses bristles and plumes of horsehair and wool, and a long tongue, cut from leather and lined with a cepuk textile, a powerful protective cloth. The spirit of Rangda is considered the demon queen of Bali, the personification of evil and is the enemy of Barong who is the personification of good Barong is both the name of a holy spirit and the dance in which the battle between Barong and Rangda is acted out with masks. The Barong dance is meant to show the battle between the forces of good and evil and the triumph of good over evil. The dance and the masks have become an important cultural attraction for tourists to Bali."

Rita Simon's prints are striking visuals. Where no idea or image is out of bounds, Simon reaches beyond conventional understanding to depict un-worldly concepts she fantasizes. Says she: "I use elements of reality to create my own reality." Her complex and dream-like prints are more like visions in mystery. Familiar objects such as spheres, eyes, balls of yarn, birds, and windows and mirrors lighten her vision and mystify ours.

Her fascination with mirrors and reflections was previously apparent in her signature - ATIRNOMIS - Rita Simon spelled backwards. In 1971 and again in 1974, her work was exhibited in the windows of two dozen Madison Avenue galleries, an exhibition that brought her a great amount of attention, and positive press coverage. A graduate of Cornell University and the Academy of Rome in Italy, Simon has written for various art publications and has coordinated original theme exhibitions including "Reality Plus" at the James Yu Gallery, Soho.