Tearing

Occurrences happen in almost all human activities; some of them gain space, attention, and, inexplicably, even a market. But when we talk about contemporary art, it’s like trying to describe a labyrinth made of light and steam. In this infamous country, we call that effect “humo y espejitos”—smoke and little mirrors—a mesmerizing maneuver once used by the Spanish conquerors with the Mexicas.

It is also true that many concepts that seem obvious turn out not to be so simple, and in fact have a strong and deep foundation. The problem appears when a piece is thesis-less, so the frontier between a snake charmer and a, possibly incomprehended, artist becomes a very thin line—where the art Caesars have the last word, or more accurately, the thumb up or down.

Concetto Spaziale, Attesa, Lucio Fontana, 1966.

However, only time decides if a creator is an artist or a cheater. I find an example close to what I’ve said here in the work of Lucio Fontana. Personally, I think his creation is quite disputable and controversial. Nonetheless, I admit that beyond his conceptual argument, his art is compelling—unlike Comedian, which will have its moment on this blog—because he had the vision to go through the whole reflection process, as I conceive it: turning the plain into a complex analysis, and then landing it into a simple but profound synthesis.

You may agree or not, you may like his work or not, but there is something undeniable in Fontana’s art: one glance at it, and it becomes permanent in the gaze and the mind.

Lucio Fontana indeed tore ap-art reality.

Tearing