Mexican artists preserving the occult
Four young stars from the Mexican artistic scene will showcase their works during “MEX4: Preservation Of The Occult”, a four-in-one visual-arts exhibition, at the National Gallery Bangkok from Wednesday until Aug 30. Presented by the Embassy of Mexico, this is the first opportunity for Thai viewers to witness 81 photographs, sculptures and mixed-media artworks that represent the peaceful coexistence between several generations, as well as depict some of the movements of contemporary Mexican art.
The In-Between/Difference series by California-based female photographer Sylvana Burns shows a provocative distortion of female beauty ideals. She transforms female nudes into a mere reference, creating an interplay on a single plane between what is in the front, in the back, on the sides and up and down through a reflection instrument, resulting in a complete disappearance of the female nude and leaving behind only the audience’s ubiquitous gaze.
Maribel Portela’s Impermanence is a monumental series of paper sculptures showing the germination process and plant growth, while a series of mixed-media works titled Urban Altarpieces by Hector de Anda appropriate almost a hundred vacant and disjointed advertisements, scattered throughout Mexico City.
Adolfo Perez Butron, meanwhile, presents Demons, which surprises with colourful photography of ancestral masks that coexist with the actual world — the world as we know it.
The opening ceremony is on Aug 8 at 5.30pm, followed by a guided tour to the exhibition by two of the artists. The exhibition is part of the Bangkok Biennial 2018. The National Gallery is on Chao Fa Road and is Wednesday until Sunday, 9am-5pm.