Maria Paz Bascuñán

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Maria Paz Bascuñán is GlogauAIR resident
from June, 2022 to September, 2022

Mari Paz Bascuñán is an artist from Chile, who has been a resident artists at GlogauAIR from July to September 2022. This interview is the result of a conversation between Savanna Fortgang and the artist that took place during September 2022 in the residency.

Meet the Artist

Savanna: What do you do as an artist?

Mari Paz: As an artist I work with natural fabrics and natural dyes like cochineal, turmeric, indigo and now I am investigating Cyanotype.

S: What is your process?

MP: First, I go through a creative process of reading and research depending for example on where I am going to exhibit, or in what context or project I am working to generate works according to what I want to communicate.

Then I start collecting images and fabrics that I would like to work with and intervene them through the act of doing and undoing.

S: Why do you create the art that you do – what are overarching themes in your artwork?

MP: I started working on fabrics, specifically weaving and unweaving them one day when I was dismantling an artwork. It caught my attention to see the threads that were appearing when I was unweaving and I started to make games of lights and shadows depending on how many threads I took out and how many I left. On the other hand, the very act of doing and undoing led me to a meditative state and to connect from a place that I wanted to continue exploring. Through the fabrics I started investigating the idea that all identity is fragmentary and is made of pieces that are woven together to form a whole that never remains fixed. To unravel what has been done is to establish the attempt to return to an original and complete state of things, the denial of time and its destruction. Under this idea I re-signifies the concept of territory and limits, represented by unwoven forms in tension, as an instance of encounter, a threshold that does not limit the possibilities, but rather enhances and amplifies them. It becomes an ambiguous terrain where different threads coincide and intermingle. Like the fabrics where the different threads that come off, overlap and cross from one end to the other to form a fabric that reveals the hidden framework behind the illusion of uniformity, reflecting in turn, with this act of doing and undoing on the internal and external process that affect our emotions, decisions and movements. I configure a threshold where the traditional temporal and spatial conceptions of observation dissolve, it is possible to observe a simultaneous construction from different corners and with different orientations, shaping a dialogical vision, where different voices converge and syncretically shape the discourse.

S: How has your work evolved since being here at GlogauAIR? How has GlogauAIR changed your practice?

MP: It was very nice when I started working for the GlogauAIR project because I followed my own line of creative process and when I read and researched about the place where I was going to be, I realized that Chile and Germany, despite being far apart, have many things in common that I could enhance in my work here (not only with the migration that brought to Chile influences in architecture, food, culture, etc., but for example when the wall fell, democracy returned to Chile).This residency has enriched my line of research in the selection of work elements looking for their form of expression, communication and creation through these new possibilities of execution. This experience has allowed me to understand some dynamics and to approach from some perspective problems and qualities that connect both realities. It has been a laboratory of experimentation to enrich my critical and analytical visual thinking in relation to my work. Among the works, there are some whose main image is the representative eagle on the German coat of arms and others the Condor on the Chilean coat of arms, taking as a reference the legend “The eagle and the condor: A prophecy for our times”. Most of the world’s indigenous peoples have prophecies that help them explain the past in the context of the future, in order to make sense of the present. Many cultures present similar prophecies: a good example of this is the Prophecy of the Eagle and the Condor. This is not just a legend, but rather a look into our past, ourselves and our future.

S: What’s next for you? Where do you see yourself going as an artist?

MP: After the residency I return to my country to resume the work I left frozen to live this experience to the fullest. The first thing will be to digest everything I have lived, I have seen and learned and then to order the information and thus take as a reference what has served me and connects with my work to generate future works. I am in conversations with a Chilean-German Museum in the south of Chile that could be interested in exhibiting my work and that conceptually unites with what I have done here. As an artist I see myself generating ties and bridges of connection with places that enhance my creative activity. I see myself working in textile and taking it to its maximum potential through different techniques that I discover and intertwine to generate a coherent and honest discourse.

Statement

When observing the created fabrics, we appreciate a work where various materials and structures are combined and intertwined. Each work goes beyond the traditional limits of an art work and challenges the viewer to reconfigure preconceived ideas and expectations. The art works invite us to enter a border area, where the rigid daily schemes are put into tension. Paz works with natural fabrics and investigate the idea that all identity is fragmentary and is made of pieces that are woven together to form a whole that never remains fixed. She investigates the act of doing and undoing as a metaphor for our own cultural trajectory. To unravel what has been done is to establish the attempt to return to an original and complete state of things, the denial of time and its destruction. Under this idea she re-signifies the concept of territory and its manifestations, represented by unwoven forms in tension with metal pieces, as an instance of encounter, a threshold that does not limit the possibilities, but rather enhances and amplifies them. It becomes an ambiguous terrain where different threads coincide and intermingle. Like the fabrics where the different threads that come off, overlap and cross from one end to the other to form a fabric that reveals the hidden framework behind the illusion of uniformity, reflecting in turn, with this act of doing and undoing on the internal and external process that affect our emotions, decisions and movements. Paz configure a threshold where the traditional temporal and spatial conceptions of observation dissolve, it is possible to observe a simultaneous construction from different corners and with different orientations, shaping a dialogical vision, where different voices converge and syncretically shape the discourse. Paz’s works invite us to undo and redo the multiple pieces that are sewn to our being, closely observing that syncretic fabric that makes us up and of which we are a part.

Maria Paz Bascuñán

GlogauAIR Project

The project that I intend to carry out in the residence is based on the historical tradition that unites Chile and Germany in order to create new cultural links through works that intermingle the fabrics of one place and another, enhancing this relationship. Although they are different countries and with a great distance between them, there has always been a special relationship, not only because of German immigration in Chile, but also because of the relations that intensified throughout the 20th century until today.

I will create textile works, which will be intertwined through the fraying treatment that I give to each one, reflecting on the concepts of breaking borders and collective strength, as well as the reciprocal relationship between these that turns the fragments into a diverse and harmonious whole.

Among the works, there will be some whose main image will be the representative eagle on the German coat of arms and others the Condor on the Chilean coat of arms, taking as a reference the legend “The eagle and the condor: A prophecy for our times”.

Most of the world’s indigenous peoples have prophecies that help them explain the past in the context of the future, in order to make sense of the present. Many cultures present similar prophecies: a good example of this is the Prophecy of the Eagle and the Condor. This is not just a legend, but rather a look into our past, ourselves and our future.

This residency will enrich my research line in the selection of work elements seek their form of expression, communication and create through these new possibilities of execution. This experience will allow me to understand some dynamics and approach from some perspective (yet to be discovered) problems and qualities that connect both realities. It will be an experimentation laboratory to enrich my critical and analytical visual thinking in relation to my work.

CV Summary

Professional Studies

  • Bachelor of Arts, Mention in Sculpture, Finis Terrae University 2006, Santiago Chile.
  • Bachelor of Education, Visual Arts mention, Finis Terrae University 2008, Santiago Chile.

Postgraduate

  • Contemporary Applied Arts, Postgraduate Diploma, Escola Massana 2016, Barcelona Spain.

Residencies

  • 2014 SVA, School of Visual Arts, Mixed media and painting residency, NYC, U.S.A.

Biennials

  • 2017 7th Beijing International Contemporary Art Biennale, China.

Workshops

  • 2019 Workshop about natural dyes held at Krank Gallery, Istanbul, Turkey.

Individual Exhibitions

  • 2019 SYNCRETIC, “Krank gallery”, Istanbul, Turkey.
  • 2016 CORRELATION, “Las Cóndes Municipality Hall”, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2015 SYNERGY, “ECLAC” (The Economic Commission for Latin American and the Caribbean), Santiago, Chile.
  • 2007 ASSEMBLIES, “Amigos del Arte Gallery”, Santiago, Chile.

Collective Exhibitions

  • 2019 FAXXI, Contemporary art fair at Bicentenario Park, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2018 ART STGO, Contemporary art fair at GAM Cultural Center, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2017 INMATERIAL, “Craft and Art center of Catalunya”, Barcelona, Spain.
  • 2016 ART STGO, Contemporary art fair at GAM Cultural Center, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2014 PAINTING AND MIXED MEDIA, School of Visual Arts, SVA Recidency final exhibition, New York City, United State.
  • 2013 PAINTED BENCHES, painted benches exhibited in public spaces, Project organized by the Municipality of Vitacura and “La Sala” Art Gallery, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2012 BAZAR UC, “Extension Center of Universidad Católica de Chile”, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2011 IN WRITING, “Espora Gallery and Green Libros”, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2011 SPECIAL SALE, “Cecilia Palma” art Gallery, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2010 COLECTIVE EXHIBITION, “Trece” Art Gallery, María Paz Bascuñán and Beatriz Zapata, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2010 COLECTIVE EXHIBITION, “Artespacio” Art Gallery, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2010 SYLLOGISMS, Artistic- Cultural Space “Juventud de Providencia”, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2010 14 ROOMS, Exhibition organized by “Espora” Art Gallery and Doctor Navarro Clinic, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2009 PAINT VIÑA, Exhibition of Artists selected at the “Paint Viña” contest organized by the Municipality of “Viña del Mar”, “Canal 13”, “TVN”, “ La Sala” Art Gallery, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2009 PAINT VIÑA, Carrasco Palace, “Viña del Mar”, Chile.
  • 2009 AT THE LIMIT ARTISTS, Exhibition organized by “Ana María Matthei” Art Gallery, “Casa Piedra”, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2008 EMPAPELARTE, “Ana María Matthei”, Art Gallery, Santiago, Chile.
  • 2007 ART HEARTS, Exhibition of open workshops of artists at the “Salvador Donoso” street, “Bellavista” Burrows, Santiago Chile.
  • 2007 P&P PAPER AND PRINTS, “Moro” Art Gallery, Santiago, Chile.

Distinctions

  • 2019 selected artist who obtain the financial granted by the National Cultures Ministry of Chile, FONDART 2019 to exhibit her solo show “Syncretic” at Krank art Gallery in Istanbul, Turkey
  • 2017 selected to participate at the theme exhibition of the 7th Beijing International Art Biennale, China.
  • 2015 Along with five other artists is selected to show her Portafolio on Ch.ACO’15 (Chile Contemporary Art Fair), Santiago, Chile.
  • 2010 Along with twenty other artists is selected in the contest Paint Viña 2012, organized by The Municipality of Viña del mar, National TV of Chile, Channel 13 and art gallery La Sala.
  • 2008 Selected artist by the Curator of the Museum of Latin American Art of California, (Idurre Alonso), to be published in the anniversary edition of the “Arte al Límite”, Magazine.

Gallery

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