For Pinta Miami, The Contemporary Art Modern Project presents works by Gustavo Fernandes, Khotan Fernandez, Clara Fialho, Rosana Machado Rodriguez, Silvana Soriano, and Carlos Rancaño as The Interior.
For millennia, humankind has expanded upon the realities of our imaginations, blossoming creatively not for “progress”, but for the sake of experiencing life as it is. Artistic expression, and by and large the general sphere of Art, is a space for introspection and transformation, allowing for a manifestation of all that one cannot properly verbalize: worldview, identity, emotions, and ideas. It can be argued that it is the one realm that operates on the base of emotional interrogation, understanding, and revolution—not just in dialogue with a stranger, but including the conversation one has with themselves. This extends to the artistic process, especially one affected by a year spent in the interiors of the imagination, dwelling space, and remote society. Considering the widespread universal upheaval of 2020, our selection for Pinta Miami aims to explore self-reflection and the concept of the interior monologue through a spectrum of artistic expression. Although much of these works were created prior to the current moment, they act as evidence of the subconscious entanglement of the imagination and the creative.
Gustavo Fernandes’ raw and eerie portraits bring to mind the darker aspects of emotion, engaging with the easily attained, emotional rabbit holes of a world spinning under pandemic. When juxtaposed with Carlos Rancaño’s classical and intimate portraiture, expressing that something always lies beneath the facade of public expression, we bare witness to moments of isolation, similarly investigating, in an almost voyeuristic manner, the delicate and sometimes alienating nature of our intrapersonal desire and relationships.
Alongside them are primate portraits by Khotan Fernandez, opposing the subconscious human construct of passion with our own animal nature and incorporating a Darwinian approach to emotion. Rosana Machado Rodriguez’ Ilusiones Fragiles explores the intricacies of the interpersonal through self-interrogation, putting expectations and contempt on display. Clara Fialho, whose piece in this exhibition is titled in honor of a 1972 song by Argentine poet and activist Maria Elena Walsh, Como la Cigarra, touches upon the significance of effort and consciousness of not only self, but the world one inhabits. Silvana Soriano’s cheeky collages survey moments of embodied solitude that go beyond what one simply sees, be it commentary on art history or gendered expression. Her pieces are, in essence, pastiched fragments of existence operating as a whole, a reminder that all facets of life operate in tandem regardless of their origin.
Statement by Maria Gabriela Di Giammarco
