Azucena Vieites
CHECK OUT WHAT IVE GOT
15 September - 27 November 2005
Sala Rekalde
Alameda de Recalde 30
48009 Bilbao
Opening: September 15th, 8:00 pm
Image: Feria, Drawing, spray paint on paper, 16 x 25 cm, 2005.
This drawing belongs to the series “Check Out What I´ve Got”.
More than 400 drawingsmost of them new piecesin various media and formats make up this, the first major solo exhibition held so far of work by Azucena Vieites.
It is no coincidence that the title of this extensive presentation of Vieites work comes from a song by the rap artist Ari, a young woman of African origin now living in Catalonia who has transformed the music scene in Spain. Check Out What Ive Got is an invitation to explore the issues of gender, group identity, sexuality and fashion, all through a body of work in drawings that take music as their principal source of reference. Fascinated by the ability of music to draw people together and to determine an aesthetic look, a code of values and identifying marks, Vieites considers the possibility of investigating how collectives that cannot be thought of as mainstream use this trick to tackle their problems and to share their perception of the world.
In her various seriesdone in marker pen and spray paint, in digital prints, on mirrors and in photocopiesVieites seems concerned to rewrite the imaginary that identifies the group aesthetics. Each community identifies with different images and sound sensibilities, aspects that also contribute to reinforcing notions of gender and class. Analysing the formal vocabulary that shapes the various panoramas that cohabit in the city is one of the goals of an ongoing oeuvre that is alert to the political nuances implicit in a groups affirmation of its identity, be it a group of young activists or of people interested in fashion. The strength of the collective, its impositions, that which we may or may not like if we are members of the group, and its value codes exercise a special fascination in Vieites pieces. All the while, this body of work represents an effort to understand how the various intergenerational universes communicate with each other: what messages for the community are generated and what bridges are extended to others?
In the rekalde space for projectsthe Abstract Cabinetis a display of work by the young artist Nerea Pozo. Blood on Canvas is a TV serial based on events and fictions that the artist has devised for the gallery using a series of canvases, a story board on the wall and a blog created for especially the occasion.
From 15th September to 16th October 2005
