Magdalena Paz
Jardin de esculturas
2020

About the Item

Artist Statement on “Houseplants” series: The following project began towards the end of 2017. The transition from my previous work (abstract expressionist paintings that explored processes related to my athletic practice) may seem spontaneous, but it was something that happened quite naturally for me after an ankle injury I suffered in June of that year. From a very active daily routine I was forced quite abruptly into a sedentary one. While being inactive was a circumstance that made me feel very uncomfortable and uneasy not only physically, but also emotionally, it was one that is so common - and comfortable - for the ever expanding digital society. Without realizing that I was beginning a new body of work I was drawn by a deep urge to painting humans as some sort of inanimate object. A houseplant I thought, a wild organism domesticated. I had a few ideas for the figures in mind and knew the composition would be set in an environment that can neither be recognized as indoor or outdoor, but without clear ideas of the final pieces. Having only rough pencil sketches to start from allowed the work to have elements of spontaneity and life, but also required perseverance to see them through to an unknown end. I experiment directly on the canvas with form and color until the subjects feel right (not necessarily anatomically, but rather aesthetically). Thereon changes continue until, upon stepping away from the work, the sum of its elements evoke a sense of harmony; sometimes on purpose, sometimes by mistake. This is in many ways a continuation of the processes I practiced in my previous work, only applied to a new subject. By embracing mistakes, and responding to aesthetic decisions on the canvas directly the painting begins to form harmony through trial and error, building simultaneously texture and depth, and maintaining an expressive quality. About the artist: Magdalena Paz was born in Santiago, Chile in 1990, but had a multi-cultural upbringing in Nigeria, Argentina, Venezuela, Egypt, Russia, Italy, Mexico, and the United States. She is a interdisciplinary artist and soccer player. Her abstract paintings, acts of practice and game, use soccer as a universal language to express ideas on awareness, memory, and identity. In the United States, she received her B.F.A. as a transfer student from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, and the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, CA in 2012. Between schools, she received sculpture and portraiture training from the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile in Santiago, Chile in 2010. Upon moving to Germany in 2013, she received another B.F.A. in Illustration from the Berliner Technische Kunsthochschule (Berlin Technical Art Academy). She has shown in solo and group exhibitions internationally including: ExGirlfriend Gallery, Berlin (2022); Chilean Conexión at Monopol, Berlin (2021); Stephanuskirche, curated by Igor Zaide, Berlin (2021); Casa Tiber 59, Mexico City (2018), White Page Art Happenings, Mexico City (2018), Galeria Fauna, Santiago (2018), Galerie Tabak, Zurich (2016), Neubad Luzern, Zurich (2016), among others. Ten of her large-scale works commissioned by the Avo Brothers can be found in two permanent locations in Milan, Italy. She currently lives, plays soccer for Hertha 03 in the regional German league, and works in her studio in Berlin, Germany.

Creator:

Magdalena Paz (1990, Chilean)

Creation Year:

2020

Dimensions:

Height: 59 in (149.86 cm)Width: 86.75 in (220.35 cm)

Medium:

Canvas,Charcoal,Pastel,Acrylic

Movement & Style:

Abstract

Period:

2010-