arteBELLO.com

The current show is a departure for Martin Naarmann (Germany, b. 1946). With these latest prints, he takes on a whole new direction. Gone are the familiar subjects of the last few years — the landscapes, the animals and people of his peculiar world, the still lifes, the social commentaries. Instead, Naarmann now focuses on a more abstract set of compositions. He plays with shapes and textures, all variations on a theme, and he tries to fit and rotate the images in Rubik’s Cube fashion. The game is done basically within a limited palette and tonal effects. The result is truly a winning combination.

Intaglio printing can be a complicated process. The artist draws or cuts the design with tools and chemicals into a metal plate. The incisions are then filled with ink, and the plate is wiped clean. The paper is pressed against the plate to pick up ink from the scrapes or scratches. Naarmann prefers aluminum to copper or zinc for the plate, and he uses a steel needle directly on the surface without any nitric acid. The intaglio technique is not very practical for large numbers, and Naarmann limits his impressions to small editions.

Martin Naarmann was educated in Germany and France. He lived and worked in French Guyana and the Ivory Coast in the 1970s. Since the 1980s, he has lived and practiced printmaking in Chile, Guatemala and Mexico. His engravings are exhibited in Europe, Latin America and the United States.

All images are 3 x 3 inches on 11 x 7-1/2 inch paper (SUPERALFA by GUARRO in Barcelona). On the bottom, Naarmann places a blind or embossed spiral on the left and a red stamp on the right, both of his own design. Editions are small — five to a run. The engravings are titled, signed (M.N.) and dated (07 or 08) in pencil. The Spanish initials E. A. are the equivalent of A. P. or Artist Proof in English.

Click on images for details.

Alfred Hentze: Ceramic Art Tiles and Plates

Alfred Hentze is an emerging artist from Guatemala. He is not really a potter or ceramist in the strict sense of the word, and he has no formal training or background in ceramics. Technically, he is a decorative painter whose canvas happens to be either terra cotta or a white majolica base.

Hentze’s art tiles and plates are not utilitarian vessels or functional objects in the traditional manner. They are strictly ornamental pieces, and such a departure from the production of household items signals a change in Guatemala, where Hentze is at the forefront of this new direction.

Hentze integrates texture, form and color, much like his own country’s indigenous textiles. The outcome is a sensual and tactile effect.

The stylized decorative surfaces of the Lágrimas and Alas series present a mystical and religious puzzle of sorts. Hentze uses multi-tile compositions as stepping-stones in a pictorial way of suffering and redemption. It is a Christian pilgrimage through lush and color-saturated landscapes. The trail leads from human tears at the foot of the Cross to angel wings and the beatific vision. The sources and references are all familiar yet fresh and unpredictable.

Hentze is becoming known to a much larger audience. His artworks have broad universal appeal and transcend regional geographical labels.

Click on images from the Lágrimas Series for details

Click on images from the Alas Series for details

PLATOS CHAPINES: RECETAS DE LA COCINA GUATEMALTECA. Dirck Arévalo. Photographs by M. A. Bello. La Antigua Guatemala: crissan45, 2007. 40 pages.
ISBN: none

Order

Francisco Goya: La Tauromaquia
Casa Santo Domingo, La Antigua Guatemala
December 2005 - March 2006

There has been quite a bit of publicity recently in the local press about a discovery of sorts at the Escuela Nacional de Artes Plásticas (ENAP) in Guatemala City. A set of prints by the famous Spanish painter-engraver Francisco Goya Lucientes (1746-1828) has been in the stacks of the school’s library without much notice since the early part of last century, and students have used the series of etchings continually as reference material until June of this year. The prints are no longer at the school. They have been at the Bancafé vault in the Capital until the opening of the current show at Casa Santo Domingo in La Antigua. ENAP is a state-run institution with very limited resources, and Goya’s La Tauromaquia or Bullfight (1816) etchings may well be its major asset.

There are four etching series by Goya: Los Caprichos (Caprices), Los Desastres de la Guerra (Disasters of War), Los Disparates (Follies), and La Tauromaquia. The Bullfight prints are the only ones published under the artist’s direct supervision. The others appear after Goya’s death. The subject matter of La Tauromaquia is also less controversial and more personal than the other graphic work. It is a documentary about bullfight by an aficionado of the sport.

La Tauromaquia has been published eight times from the original copper plates. ENAP’s set of prints is from the fifth run in 1921, and it comes to the school the following year as a gift from the then ambassador of Guatemala to Spain. The edition by the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid consists of 100 numbered copies. There are 33 prints in Goya’s initial series. Seven other etchings (A-G) have been added to subsequent editions for a total of 40. These are found by accident on the reverse side of the plates prior to the third edition. There are 38 prints in ENAP’s collection. Two prints (31 and 32) are missing from the series.

The arrangement of La Tauromaquia is a simple one. There are three basic groupings of etchings. The first is a time-line of history. A Hall of Fame roster of celebrities follows this set, and the series concludes with more or less a manual of technical maneuvers. There is movement in every print, but the etchings are also still-frames of critical moments. The upper portions of the compositions serve as background, and Goya zooms on the action by lowering the playing field. The focus is on the contrast between light and dark. It is a loose and fluid presentation. The execution is unpretentious and straightforward.

ENAP’s prints have been matted and framed for the show at Casa Santo Domingo, but the watermarks and mold are evident. Regardless of their condition, it is a rare public viewing of Goya’s La Tauromaquia in Guatemala. An exhibition catalog is in the works.

La Antigua Guatemala. Text by M. A. Bello. Watercolor illustrations by N. Clement.
Northampton, MA: arteBELLO, 2005. 32 pages.
ISBN: none

The city of La Antigua Guatemala is many things to different people. To Antigüeños, it is home. The cobblestone streets and architectural ruins are their birthright. They inherit a place semi-frozen in time and become guardians of its history. Guatemaltecos, in general, also share this sense of stewardship. The colonial city is for them a source of tremendous national pride. Antigua is a common destination of school trips and family outings. It is a place for special events and celebrations. Holy Week observances, in particular, are famous and reflect the country’s religious fervor. Visitors from around the world, too, are drawn to the city. For some, the lure of Antigua proves irresistible. They simply stay and remain under its spell, making themselves at home.

What makes Antigua such a special place? Its natural beauty, for one, is part of the attraction. Located at nearly a mile high in the Panchoy Valley of the highlands, the city is surrounded by three imposing volcanoes: Agua to the south, Acatenango and Fuego to the west. Their soaring presence looms over Antigua. Climate is another factor. The city is favored with spring-like weather all year-round. History and architecture, however, are Antigua’s strong suit. As capital of an area covering Central America and Chiapas during the Spanish colonial period, the city is unchallenged for its former political power and cultural influence. Present-day Antigua is recognized as both a national monument and one of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites.

A museum-city is a fragile environment, and Antigua is no exception. The demands of modern life threaten its very existence. Nature, however, has been Antigua’s worst enemy. The city has been destroyed by earthquakes several times over the centuries. It has been rebuilt and repaired each time. Consequently, resisting damage is a major concern of construction in Antigua and accounts for many of its massive and solid structures.

There is no definitive Antigua. The magic and romance associated with the city is basically a state of mind. Antigua is always in transition according to the dreams of its current residents. The sheer force of nature, the reality of that imminent danger, creates a sense of urgency in the city and an appreciation for life […]

Order:

Roberto González Goyri.
Dennis Leder, Bélgica Rodríguez, William Latham, Ana Lucía González and Miguel A. Bello.
Guatemala City: Editorial Antigua, 2003. 103 pages.
ISBN: 99922-722-2-8.

Order: www.macaw.com