In this massive diorama, titled The Reckoning, huge mountains dominate the landscape, waterfalls cascade down cliff faces and tiny islands peek from Puget Sound.

The landforms dwarf us as we go about our lives - a reminder of our precarious position here in the Pacific North West. The artwork seeks to put into perspective our everyday concerns, encouraging a longer term view, nurturing and responding to the natural world around us. 

There’s a deep interplay between the stillness of the monolithic landforms and the constant movement of the Sound, reflecting our physical and emotional connection with the water.

Ray Monde is renowned for his collage technique called ghostworking where he overpaints paper from magazines allowing the print to ghost through the paint, adding depth and complexity to his work.

Ray Monde also creates whimsical maritime vignettes of a much more modest scale which are exhibited through Watson Kennedy stores at 1022 First Avenue, Seattle and 86 Pine Street, Seattle.

The Reckoning Soundscape - 28:1:2023, 5.41 Pm

Soundscape to accompany art installation, When you are Gone, I'll Still be Here, commissioned by Shunpike Storefronts on Thomas Street Seattle, near corner of Boren Avenue N.

Main track, The Rocks Cry Out by AJ Hochalter is licensed from The Music Bed.

When You Are Gone, I'll Still Be Here

Ray Monde lives and works between Braidwood, Australia and Seattle, United States of America. Paper has been his obsession since childhood when he plastered his bedroom wall with cutouts from glossy magazines on the family farm near Taree. 

After a successful career in advertising in Sydney, London and New York, Monde returned to his fascination with paper which shapes his practice today. He works across a variety of mediums including collage, drawing, painting and multimedia. 

Monde’s primary technique involves hand-tearing and over-painting fragments of paper sourced from magazines. These elements are layered into detailed compositions that speak to the artist’s relationship with the physical and emotional landscapes that surround him. ​In 2022, Monde held his first major solo exhibition at a public gallery with What the Wayfarer Saw.

When You Are Gone, I'll Still Be Here

Ray Monde

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