Art Naples

12Latin American Art Enhances the Naples AreaCristina Kahlo, Dos Triángulos, 2007, Oil on PhotographyA pleasant residential Florida territory enhances its lifeexperience with an Art Fair. A variety of expressionsin the Visual Arts will present different techniques,concepts, materials and, above all, creativity. Theartwork by artists from nearby and faraway will drawpeople in and foster conversation, offering unusualexperiences to the viewers. Among them, the successfuland broad Latin American Art, shall introduce TheNaples International Pavilion’s audience to articulated,personal and vigorous sculptures, paintings, prints,artists’ furniture and jewelry. The international artcommunity is accustomed to perceive the best in artscreativity. Since a long time ago, the Naples Museumof Art has presented a wide selection of Latin AmericanArt that includes historical names, topics, techniquesand movements. With this experience, Latin AmericanArt arrives to the Naples Art Fair in a contemporaryapproach. There are the great masters, artists at thepeak of their activity, and younger professionals. All ofthem already internationally recognized and in publicand private collections worldwide.Latin America is a huge land constituted by morethan twenty Countries. The vast land makes clear thatthere is not one but many cultures, and even manyconquerors. It might be that the political systems, andthe social needs might articulate and be the most similarthings among them. Languages, materials, physicalarchetypes, geographies and land compositions, offersuch a variety that one needs to know that it would takea lifetime to study all of the Latin American cultures,and even each of them. Many years ago, in one of thefrequent dialogues with Master Rufino Tamayo –whilehe was doing one of his renowned prints- we sat anddiscussed again the topic of originality and personalimage. He was asked many times how he reached thatunique imagery, and how he got Mexican Art to be soidentified through his paintings and prints. Rufino toldme “I became aware of the beauty of my land in simpleeveryday elements. I grew up looking daily at myuncles’ fruit store. Each form, its juice pulps, the flavor,texture and ripeness imposed without me even noticingor thinking about it. I began to paint them and they areso local that they became an international language,a recognizable Mexican detail the whole world couldidentify, evoke and enjoy.”For many decades, Latin American Art was identified asfigurative. It is true but not exclusive. The Pre-Columbianpaintings found in different places show that geometrywas there hand in hand with the representation ofmyths and life. In the recent twentieth Century thesame breadth has happened and is still going on in thisMarysole Worner Baz, Books, 2008, Hand Carved Sculpture, DifferentWoods and Dimensions.young twenty-first Century. Pragmatic and intellectual elementsfind an odd balance through the art created in Latin America.Naïve, Expressionism, Classic, Baroque, Abstract, Surrealism,Magic Realism, and more artistic movements live together in finecombinations and individual approaches.Photography and painting, objects and furniture, relieves andjewelry, prints and drawings, ceramic, glass, wood, all theseand more integrate the categories by which one is constantlyamazed. From the peaceful Francisco Zúñiga’s women to theactive portraits of the Argentinean photographer Sergio Fasola…from the geometrical kinetic paintings, relieves and sculptures byCecilia Biagini – the New York based Argentinean artist- to thesculptures and astonishing furniture by Guillermo Mac Lean, theviewer enters joyful life expressions to let the eyes dwell upon.Ceramic sculptures by Leonor Anaya have entered Londonbased private collections, who also have demonstrated thatphotography has become one of the most appreciated mediums,as are prints and drawings. Cristina Kahlo, grand-niece of therenowned Mexican Painter, creates her own signature artwork inher family’s photography history.Recently, books as a topic became highly attractive, they aremainly created three dimensional but also in other characteristics.An increasing group of art professionals have grown doing jewelrythat has not expensive shining stones but original designs madeof threads, sterling silver, found objects, and synthetic materials.A smile and a happy spirit grow while walking and watching theartwork created under the Latin American sun.Graciela KartofelArt Historian (*)Pedro Friedeberg’sButterfly Chair1990