Venessa Monokian Turns Cut Photographs of Invasive Air Potato Vine Into Glowing Sculptures
Venessa Monokian, an artist based in Houston but originally hailing from Miami, transforms photographs of tropical plants into three-dimensional sculptures using air potato vine (Dioscorea bulbifera), an invasive species now available in Houston. Her journey with photography began as a means to manage a learning disability. Before relocating from South Florida, she focused on local flora. While on a residency in Argentina, she experimented with layered elements, delving into positive and negative spaces. In Houston, the humidity influences her pinned prints, which regain their form after removal. Upcoming endeavors include a 2026 exhibition of an artist book at Cornell University and a solo showcase at the Houston Center for Photography. Monokian is the recipient of the 2024 Jones Artist Award and has an MFA from Florida International University.
Key facts
- Venessa Monokian cuts and shapes photographs of tropical plants into sculptural forms with painted backs that create a reddish glow
- The central plant is air potato vine (Dioscorea bulbifera), an invasive species in South Florida now sold decoratively in Houston
- Monokian began using photography as an adaptive learning tool for her learning disability
- She started cutting photographs before leaving South Florida to create portable work
- A residency in Argentina led her to separate layered works into individual panels, revealing shadows
- Houston humidity curling pinned prints prompted intentional shaping of the paper
- No protective coating is applied, allowing the paper to respond to temperature and humidity
- She received the 2024 Jones Artist Award from the Houston Endowment for the Arts
- Recent 2026 projects include an artist book exhibition at Cornell University, a two-person show with the Throughline, and a solo exhibition at the Houston Center for Photography
- In 2025 her work appeared in CraftTexas at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and in a Magenta Foundation Instagram takeover
- She holds an MFA from Florida International University and is affiliated with Box13 ArtSpace and the Throughline Collective
Entities
Artists
- Venessa Monokian
- Sarah Hood Salomon
Institutions
- Lenscratch
- Cornell University
- Throughline Collective
- Houston Center for Photography
- Houston Center for Contemporary Craft
- Magenta Foundation
- Houston Endowment for the Arts
- Box13 ArtSpace
- Florida International University
- Met/Gal
- Contemporary Arts Center
- Mac Fine Art
- Academy of Fine Arts in Poland
- Panal 361
Locations
- Houston
- United States
- Miami
- Florida
- South Florida
- Argentina
- Poland
- Canada
- Austin
- New Orleans
- Fort Lauderdale