LONDON.- Cecilia Brunson Projects opened a group exhibition of nine UK-based Latin American artists. Entitled Contagio and curated by artist Jaime Gili, the show is comprised of newly commissioned or recent work by Cecilia Bonilla, Alexandre Canonico, Martín Cordiano, Patricia Domínguez, Jaime Gili, Lucía Pizzani, Manuela Ribadeneira, Lizi Sánchez and Chino Soria.
Contagio gives each artist the opportunity to communicate a personal, poetic or political message that speaks to past and present Latin American and European artistic traditions and cultural circumstances. In doing so, the exhibition is an experiment to test the depth of the artists’ shared perspective at the confluence between Latin America and Europe. With nearly every country in the Southern Cone represented, Contagio aims to openly highlight the importance of cultural exchange and illustrate how the flow of artistic and cultural traditions have a ‘contagious’ element to them.
Accompanying the works, there is a library displaying publications selected by each artist. A catalogue has been published with a text by Kiki Mazzucchelli.
Cecilia Bonilla – (b. Montevideo, Uruguay, 1973) Cecilia’s multidisciplinary practice spans across collage, photography, video, sculpture and assemblage. Playfully, yet seriously, throughout her work themes of domesticity, the ideals of beauty, ‘life-style’, and other social constructs are questioned, corrupted and undermined through minimal, yet skilful modification. She attained a Master’s Degree at Chelsea College of Art, London. She has exhibited internationally including the National Museum of Visual Arts, Montevideo (2013) and most recently at Atchugarry Arts Foundation, Miami (2019).
Alexandre Canonico – (b. Pirassununga, Brazil, 1974) Influenced by architectural principles, Alexandre’s practice highlights the transition between spatial representation and physical expression. Alexandre graduated from Faculdade de Belas Artes de Sao Paulo in 1999 and is currently at the postgraduate programme of the Royal Academy in London. He has exhibited internationally including the Royal Academy of Arts, London (2019); Kubik Gallery, Portugal (2019); Galeria Marilia Razuk, Brazil (2019).
Martín Cordiano – b. Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1975) Martín’s practice is an exploration of the contradiction between the dynamic world we live in and the rigid structures of the building environment and architecture that contains it. As a result, art is used as a lens to think and rethink this language, trying actively to renegotiate meaning through asking questions differently. He attained a Master’s Degree at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, London, and has exhibited internationally including the 57th Venice Biennale in 2017.
Patricia Domínguez – (b. Santiago de Chile, 1984) Bringing together experimental research on ethnobotany, healing practices and the corporatisation of wellbeing, Patricia’s work focuses on the transference from colonial times to neoliberal practices of extraction and overworking. She completed a Master’s Degree from Hunter College in New York. Recent solo exhibitions include Gasworks, London (2019); Momenta, Biennale de l'image, Montreal (2019); Pizzuti Collection Museum, Columbus Ohio (2016).
Jaime Gili – (b. Caracas, Venezuela, 1972) Jaime’s recent work brings abstract painting to what he sees as a necessary crossing between modernist tradition and current affairs, as seen in his shows in London in 2017 and New York in 2018. His recent series uses colour to talk about candid illusions and broken promises. He attained a Master’s Degree from the Royal College of Art, London. Gili's work is in public and private collections including: The Blanton Museum, Houston, and the Diane and Bruce Halle Collection, Arizona, USA. Exhibitions include The Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation (CIFO), Miami, (2014), Bloomberg Space, London (2009) and Bienal de Mercosur (2007).
Lucía Pizzani – (b. Caracas, 1975) Lucía has studied ancient rituals of Aztec gods to delve into ideas of regeneration, transformation and metamorphosis, through ceramics, photography, installation, collage and video. For this show, Lucía is working with the symbolism of snake skin to express concepts of power and dominance. She attained a Master’s Degree from Chelsea College of Arts and a Diploma on Conservation Biology from Columbia University, New York. She has exhibited internationally and has recently completed commissions for The Photographers’ Gallery and The Cultivist. This year she was in residency at Fundación MARSO and will be at Casa Wabi in 2020, both in México.
Manuela Ribadeneira – (b. Ecuador, 1966) Manuela’s artistic practice often starts with investigations into small moments or events that dramatically shape the wider historical narrative. Employing a wide variety of media, she addresses the arbitrary nature of borders, as well as their political, cultural, and historical implications. Manuela is featured in several collections at key museums, including the Guggenheim, New York. She has exhibited internationally, including at The Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation (CIFO), Miami (2018) and represented Ecuador at the Venice Biennale (2007).
Lizi Sánchez – (b. Lima, Perú, 1975) Lizi’s practice is characterised by an uncannily ‘familiar’ air that leads us down a path of well researched visual references that appeal to our memory. Her use of colour, fonts and their industrial appearance, relay fragments of commercial and popular culture that sabotage the mechanism by which these infiltrate our aesthetic sensibilities. She holds a Master’s Degree from Goldsmiths College, London. She has exhibited internationally, including Whitechapel Gallery, London (2015) and Drawing Room Biennial, London (2015).
Chino Soria – (b. Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1964) Chino is an architect and artist who produces sculptures, drawings, paintings, installations and computer-generated pictures. His recent work echoes the precarious, provisional and hyper-consumerist character of our times. Chino’s work has been exhibited internationally, including: Hyperspots Art Space, Venice, California, USA; and Braga Menéndez, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
