Teresa Estapé: De construir
The artist tries to find the limits of matter so as to see what a work of art with minimum matter can communicate.
Is it really true that everything is moving over to the virtual world? It may be so. Surely it must be if you stop to think about it. Whole bookshelves loaded with books downsized into what to me seem horrible and soulless gadgets: tablets. People who no longer listen to their friends’ voice but rather direct their eyes to what WhatsApp has to say… Teresa Estapé says that “matter is going through a crisis, and all that is tangible is reduced, replaced and virtualised”. It’s a fact that we have all witnessed and that she wanted to bring to the limit through De construir, which is based on building (construir in Catalan) and deconstructing (deconstruir in Catalan). In short, to build without matter.
The project aims to create a sense of danger and protection towards fragile objects. It consists of a multiple art installation that will be divided into two stages, each one linked to one of the main concepts.
The first installation will take place in the window of Passeig de Gràcia shop Vinçon. Teresa intends to take the public by surprise and enhance the perception of her work in choosing an unexpected location, which in the end is still a shop window rather than a exhibition hall. The steel wires and ‘gabarrotes’ (a special type of nail used in upholstery) will create a frail-looking structure, lightweight but strong and powerful. As if it were a spider web invading and protecting the space contained within.
The second installation will be at the front steps of the Santa Monica Arts Centre and will focus on the lighting setup since shadows will be the the centre of attention. A deconstruction project from matter to non-matter.
What I like the most about the installation is that the artist is inviting us to see her creation while she is there on her own working away with her ladder, tools, scaffolding, and various materials… We can watch and gossip as much as we please. And we will see how a set of materials that fits in a shoebox grows day by day and shapes into its magnificent and triumphant conclusion.
De construir
Sala Vinçon (escaparate) / Passeig de Gràcia, 96
March 19th to March 23rd (construction process)
Until April 12th (exhibition)
Arts Santa Mónica / La Rambla, 7
March 26th to March 30th (construction process)
Until June 2nd (exhibition)