With “Hook” Gabrielle Kilian Sims depicts in charcoal what might be a nightmarish metamorphosis to insect–or from insect to human. Either way, we are caught in its tensions. The creature struggles under threat from forces beyond its control The image is an expression of the pain of accepting loss and change, made more intense by the bonds between loved ones. This body of work emerged from Gabrielle Kilian Sims’s grieving period after the death of her adult daughter from heart failure in 2010. The work shows a clear influence of German Expressionists; Kathe Kollwitz, although known for realism, is a particularly strong reference point for Sims’s figuration and emotial depth.