Tuesday, August 27, 2013

North Quarter

As I review the pictures of Delgado's "Cuarto Norte" I can't help but feel personally disconnected from the work for a few reasons. As a multimedia project, I feel it was something to be experienced in the moment and that couldn't be accurately replicated in a few photos. I also feel that the placement of the items in the room is more relevant to the project than the website detailed. It's an experience that seems poorly translated in the photos and on the website.

After struggling with my high school Spanish skills I ended up using an online translator to read the article. The information in the article in combination with what we were shown in class leads me to believe that this is a very personal piece to the artist with many more layers of meaning that the general public has context for.

I have a couple of ideas on the meaning of this work but I don't think I could accurately express my feelings because the article was so vague... and in Spanish.

Despite all of this I am reminded of a series of paintings Warhol did in the late 70's which have come to be known as "Oxidation Paintings" or as Warhol referred to them "Piss Paintings." In these works, Warhol covered canvas with metallic paints (gold and bronze are the only shades I'm aware of) and had visitors to the factory urinate on them. The urine oxidized the paint and created dark abstract shapes on the canvas.



While the resulting painting is what people study today the act of urinating/ the oxidation itself could be considered multimedia just like the build up of condensation/ice on the bust in "Cuarto Norte." While I don't think it was Warhol's intention for these to be viewed as multimedia I think the connection between the reacting metals in these pieces is a valuable contribution.

-Michael

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