Diana de Solares

Arróniz presents 14 momentos de resonancia y un asomo de cuerpos en el espacio by artist Diana de Solares.

From her studio in Antigua Guatemala, Diana de Solares has cultivated a profound dialogue with her surroundings, as well as with the tradition of European and American abstract art. And yet, in the words of Fajardo-Hill, she is formally inserted in the “expansion and questioning of the experimental tradition of abstraction that emerged at the beginning of the twentieth century in Latin America until the 1970s.

His work explores the fragility and precariousness of life. And it reflects the human condition, but also his own personal journey. Sinking his roots in the Guatemalan context, his artistic practice is nourished by these diverse sources and thus creates a bridge between his immediate environment and the abstract currents that have shaped the history of art. In this sense, she undertakes one of the most ambitious tasks for an artist: to carry out a critical and radical exploration of reality through a practice based on abstraction.

De Solares chooses, therefore, to work politically in art. Not from a critical reflection on the past, present or any specific aspect of political life, but from a phenomenological stance. Since her first exhibition in 1994, and as she has consolidated herself as a key figure in contemporary Guatemalan art, her artistic language has advanced in a progressive redefinition of the mundane and the ephemeral.

The unpublished series, 14 momentos de resonancia y un asomo de cuerpos en el espacio, are an exploration of the connection between the self and the world through art. The title reflects the duality of his work, where the “moments” materialize in diptychs and the “bodies” in construction iron sculptures. These elements are intricately intertwined, to create a friction between the ephemeral and the enduring, the universal read from the personal. Each diptych / moment is a fragment of time that leaves an indelible mark in our memory and perception. For de Solares, these are instants that she has perceived with clarity -manifestations of her resonance with the world- that have led her to want to involve the viewer in a contemplative and empathetic journey, in which each one's own experiences are brought into play.

By transforming discarded materials into geometric sculptures, de Solares integrates her work into a global conversation about form, space and identity. The complete series of 70 diptychs attests to her ability to capture these moments, through forms, colors and compositions that reveal the artist's genuine perception of the world.

Inspired, among others, by the thought of Hartmut Rosa, who argues that resonance is essential for a full and meaningful life, Diana de Solares explores how this concept manifests itself in her creative process. Rosa suggests that, in an age dominated by acceleration and alienation, resonance offers a vital alternative: the ability to connect deeply with our environment and the people around us. De Solares transfers this idea to the artistic realm, where resonance with the world drives its creation. It is not just a hypothesis, but a lived experience that is reflected, in the case of this exhibition, in each of her diptychs.

In this exhibition, the artist presents sculptures that occupy the space with a solemn and ambiguous presence. They are not defined human representations, but bodies that suggest a latent life and explore the tension between the human and the constructed. The use of textiles in these sculptures adds another layer of meaning since, being part of the everyday and the intimate, they contrast with the coldness of iron and create a duality that reflects the complexity of the human condition. This duality is central to Diana de Solares' work, where the industrial and the personal, the erected and the lived, meet and “resonate” together.

The ideas of the philosopher Merleau-Ponty, particularly his concept of “being in the world”, also come into play in Diana de Solares' pieces, where the “bodies” are actors in a mise-en-scène without narrative or citation. They are tools for reflection and meditation, inviting the viewer to consider his or her own relationship and connection to the world.

In addition, Diana de Solares challenges how Latin American and “Western” art are traditionally viewed as separate entities and how abstraction is often considered apolitical. Her works, as a bridge between these artistic contexts, address the precariousness and fragility of life and reflect both the human condition and her own experience. By delving into reality critically and radically through an artistic practice grounded in symbolic abstraction, he challenges traditional perceptions of art and strives to integrate his work into a global conversation.

This sensitivity to the fragile is not only reflected in her choice of materials, but also in the very structure of her works, where instability and transience are key elements. Through this exhibition, Diana de Solares offers an insight into her creative process and a reflection on how we perceive and relate to our surroundings. She invites us to slow down, to find resonance amidst the speed of modern life and connect with what is essentially human. His work unfolds as an introspective journey to a place where artistic practice becomes a way of being in the world, and finding harmony in the midst of chaos.

–Bruno Leitão

Gallery participating in GAMA WEEK from September 19 to 22, 2024.