Artwork
Bath
Bath is a print by Cecilia Mandrile. It dates from 2002 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
Cecilia Mandrile’s work "Bath" is a printed image produced as part of her early‑2000s series of ID cards. The piece combines a digitally altered self‑portrait rendered as a small doll with a photographic backdrop of a 17th‑century building in Bath, United Kingdom, creating a juxtaposition of personal and historic space.
Subject & Meaning
The doll, fashioned from a manipulated self‑portrait, appears sorrowful and shadowed, its head bandaged and set against a bleak environment. Mandrile interprets the acronym “ID” as “Intensively Displaced,” using the image to comment on the precarious condition of migrants who must repeatedly leave their homes and adapt to limited resources.
Technique & Style
Mandrile employs a portable digital studio, creating the doll image on a computer and printing it on location. The final print merges the computer‑generated figure with a photographic capture of Bath’s historic architecture, echoing the aesthetic of tourist snapshots while subverting their typical idyllic content.
History & Provenance
The work belongs to a series produced between 2002 and 2004, during which Mandrile explored themes of homelessness and itinerancy after leaving Argentina in her twenties. The specific print is catalogued by the museum as E.214:1‑2005.
Context
Mandrile’s practice reflects a broader artistic engagement with mobility and displacement, drawing on her own experiences of travel and migration. By situating the figure within a recognizable British landmark, the piece highlights the universal nature of forced movement across different cultural settings.
Artist & collection
Artist
Cecilia Mandrile’s prints capture everyday places and moods in simple, direct lines.
