Luis Gonzalez Palma
dal 12/5/2004 al 2/7/2004
Segnalato da
12/5/2004
Luis Gonzalez Palma
Robert Mann Gallery, New York
'Jerarquias de Intimidad' (Hierarchies of Intimacy) is Luis Gonzalez Palma's newest body of work; it focuses on the complexity of communication found in all intimate relationships - these pieces are less explicitly rooted in the troubled history of his native Guatemala. Many of the images suggest a larger drama that has been interrupted: connections lost, broken, or rediscovered.
Luis González Palma is one of Latin America's most important photographers. Born in Guatemala in 1957 and trained as an architect, he currently lives in Argentina. He began his career as an artist in the 1980s, photographing native Mayan Indians in theatrical settings, often adorned with objects related to their cultural heritage: wings, flowers, crowns, and masks. The resulting portraits are dignified, almost regal; Palma's subjects gaze outward with a sense of wisdom that seems centuries old. His technique augments the historical roots of the work; Palma distresses the amber patina of each photograph by folding, scratching, stitching, and painting, often adding elements such as cloth and kodalith to make the artwork unique. Ultimately, his photographs "transcend time and place, suggesting that mythicism, beauty and sorrow, and the human condition are his ultimate subject matter." (John Wood, 'Poems of Sorrow')
'JerarquÃas de Intimidad' (Hierarchies of Intimacy) is Luis González Palma's newest body of work; it focuses on the complexity of communication found in all intimate relationships - these pieces are less explicitly rooted in the troubled history of his native Guatemala. Many of the images suggest a larger drama that has been interrupted: connections lost, broken, or rediscovered. As with Palma's previous work, 'JerarquÃas de Intimidad' is marked by a lexicon of symbols: desire, solitude, grief and pain manifest as physical objects, talismans that include stones, knives, skulls, thorns and chairs. These are the keys that grant access to the subconscious world of Palma's images, a world that reflects the hierarchies of intimacy upon which our lives and relationships are built.
Luis González Palma was exhibited in the 49th Annual Venice Biennale in 2001. His work is also included in numerous museums such as the Art Institute of Chicago; the Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Paris; the Fogg Museum at Harvard University, Boston; the High Museum of Art, Atlanta; and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Publications include 'Poems of Sorrow' (Arena Editions, 1999) and 'Il Silencio de Maya' (Peliti Associati, 1998).
Reception May 13, 6-8 pm
HOURS
Tuesday-Saturday 11am-6pm
Robert Mann
210 Eleventh Avenue New York NY 10001
(between 24th & 25th Streets, Floor 10)
T 212.989.7600
F 212.989.2947