PAST EXHIBITION
Hugo Bastidas: Bridges, Paths and Portals
October 31, 2007—December 1, 2007

Press Release

In this new body of work, Bastidas returns to the theme of the path and the mark.  As in his earlier works, these paintings portray places that exist in reality, and yet they also depict a place that exists in the subconscious, symbolic of our everyday decisions and fears.  Bastidas exemplifies the journey and the paths that we are faced with each day of our lives.

Bastidas’ technique of optical effects truly sets the stage for a wonderful visual and subconscious experience. Not only does he please the viewer aesthetically, but he brings out the internal essence of our daily lives and construes their rich sensations and themes on canvas.  The realism and sheer magnitude of the paintings draw us in, and yet as one moves closer, the intense distinction and reflection of light pushes us to step back. It is his artistic genius, ability to contrast ideals, and continual exploration in different ways that puts Bastidas at the forefront of today’s artists.

Bastidas’ black and white style is the basis of the works’ majesty and mysticism. As one examines his canvases it is difficult not to simply appreciate the works for their craftsmanship, the idea of the stroke and its innate personality.  Each stroke represents a moment that has happened, just as Pollock’s works were in the moment.  Bastidas’ strokes and marks work in the same manner in that they further exemplify the notion of the path, that it has a beginning, a moment, and an end. This idea of the stroke and mark contrasted with almost photographical realism, sets the stage for an incredible visual and mental experience.

 Bastidas has a deep concern for exploring the human condition and the surroundings which we are exposed to, whether it be an indigenous culture or an urban setting; we as human beings suffer from the same tragedies and dilemmas that are the ingredients for the milieu that is life. What makes his works more fascinating is that we as humans think about changing our environment and our surrounding more than we consider adapting to it, and this truly is the core of his work, the unfamiliar and unknown. In the painting Into the Mystic, he conveys these questions:  Do we cross the bridge? What is on the other side, and do we need to see it before we cross? Which is a paradox because almost every decision we make is laced with true uncertainty, but most importantly will the bridge hold up? In Into the Mystic, there is only forwards as life moves on.  It is reminiscent of his past work Split in the Road.  In Flower Bridge, he utilizes the reflection in the water as a way to creatively exemplify two different bridges that one can take through optical effects.

Another theme at the nucleus of Bastidas’ work is that of existentialism.  Oath to Armani, the series’ most set-apart piece in comparison to the rest, makes clear that Bastidas is expressing something different than the questions of life, but rather ideals concerned with selfhood. Here Bastidas contrasts the billboard with a beautiful building which is cropped focusing our attention directly on the Armani advertisement itself. He explores the inner desire and how we as human beings form ourselves internally and externally.  We are faced daily with ideas of what we should be, and what is trendy.  We are forced to fear the idea of falling behind and not being in the “in.” Thus, in this work Bastidas is expressing this dilemma which very closely contrasts with the other works in respect to the unknown, the fear of falling behind and what lies ahead in respect to the paths and bridges we cross or burn.

It is impossible not to reflect on one’s internal matters as a human when studying these works, and this is why Bastidas remains such a major force with visually charging work, yet subconsciously unnerving.  Bastidas continually strives to paint works that are at once aesthetically pleasing, but also symbolically and emblematically represent something much deeper.

A catalogue of the exhibition will be published.

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