For Galerie Ron Mandos’ third year at ARCO Madrid, four artists of the gallery will showcase an exciting selection of their latest work. This will include a life-sized sculptural installation from Hans Op de Beeck especially constructed for the fair and a drawing and sculpture installation by Cuban artist Inti Hernandez which signals his premiere appearance with the gallery.
Hans Op de Beeck’s latest work, “Secret Garden” is an achromic, life-sized sculptural installation that derives from the artist’s research in 2001-2003, where one of his subjects was the domestication of nature. These works, expressed in diverse media such as narrative film (“My brother’s gardens”, 2003), animated film (“Gardening” 2001) and sculptures (such as “Pond”, 2003), all deal with the awkward way we try to tame and organise the clearing. Both indoors and outdoors, we like to stage our surroundings in order to evoke a safe paradise for ourselves. “Secret garden” is a silent and poetic, but also absurd representation of an idiomatic little garden, presumably trapped between the walls of private properties in an overly developed urban context. This work reveals one of the general characteristics of Op de Beeck’s oeuvre, in particular the thin line between the tragic and the comic and between severity and ridicule.
Inti Hernandez will exhibit a series of drawings and two new sculptural pieces that use colour to elaborate on his earlier sculptural installation ‘Encounter Place’. This piece is a multi-faceted, human-scale structure that functions both as a meeting point as well as a space for self-reflection. Using mirrors the installation creates a metaphorical island of peace where the viewer can see him/herself reflected. It also functions as a place that attracts others and enhances the presence of people.
Arthur Kleinjan’s work is a fascinating exploration of visual perception merged with a metaphysical sensation of time, place and identity. He engages the viewer by transforming mundane situations from daily life into something unique and enigmatic. Kleinjan often records his work in public settings such as tourist or memorial sites, locations that provoke specific behaviour in the people that use them. On show will be his video ‘Follow the Sea’.
Katinka Lampe’s young models are depicted in poses and with accessories which contradict their innocence. Her work is vulnerable and distant, realistic and abstract, more like an idea than a portrait. In her recent series of paintings religion plays a key role. Copies of her recently published monograph ‘Kate, Bob & Luca’ will be available at our booth.
