Lot Essay
"From the late-eighties to the mid-nineties, I was developing my own language in painting. I found in Hispanic culture a complexity of imagery that interested me deeply, especially in folk imagery and church architecture such as The Virgin of Guadalupe symbols, the rooms full of ex-votos, and the simplicity of the altars with their bare painted walls contrasting with the Baroque saints. But Mexican culture is completely different from my own Brazilian culture. The Portuguese are cool and soft and reserved, while the Spanish are more about extremes and blood"
(Beatriz Milhazes in an interview with Arto Lindsay, published in Parkett v. 85, 2009, p. 132)
Influenced by the contrasts in the history of her own culture - from colonialism and the Brazilian baroque to modern Brazil's place in the world community, Beatriz Milhazes' world view is intimately in touch with her Brazilian identity. Characterized by use of bright colors, collage like elements, feminine sensuality and a definite Latin flavor Milhazes' paintings successfully fuse elements of her own background with that of other cultures.
Along with looking to her native Brazil and South America for inspiration, Milhazes directly considered the work of European Modernists such as Henri Matisse, Fernand Leger and Robert Delauney in her formative years. The artist sees herself as part of a world art community constantly in "dialogue" with contemporary artists such as Franz Ackermann, Christopher Wool, Philip Taaffe and Peter Halley. While their artistic styles, and life experiences, may be very different, Milhazes finds a shared interest in "color, construction, fantasy, pop decorative art, and a kind of surrealism too" (Ibid, p. 137). As reflections of her life experience and heritage, Milhazes' pictures are just as much about the process as the outcome. Painting in a silent studio Milhazes allows composition to grow organically as she works in layers, "I prefer the rhythm of the painting as I'm working on it; I like to listen only to it, and without distraction" (Ibid, p. 137)
In the present painting, Milhazes successfully blends aesthetic qualities of the iconic Hispanic imagery of the Virgin of Guadalupe with her own artistic ideology. In this kaleidoscopic vision, a composition consisting of a layered series of concentric ovals mimics the shape and essence of the mandorla depicted around the Virgin. In Milhazes' characteristic style, Fresca e Disposta como uma Compota is by no means static, but rather visually stimulating, energetic and dynamic in its organic progression; vibrant colors in undulating forms lead the eye around the canvas to encounter rosettes and bands of gold metallic paint along the way. Bundles of roses tucked between the folds of color not only incorporate an image found in many of the artist's paintings, but further enhance the possible connection to the iconic depiction of the patron saint of "New Spain". As evident in the present lot, Beatriz Milhazes breathes a renewed contemporary energy into this historic cultural imagery.
(Beatriz Milhazes in an interview with Arto Lindsay, published in Parkett v. 85, 2009, p. 132)
Influenced by the contrasts in the history of her own culture - from colonialism and the Brazilian baroque to modern Brazil's place in the world community, Beatriz Milhazes' world view is intimately in touch with her Brazilian identity. Characterized by use of bright colors, collage like elements, feminine sensuality and a definite Latin flavor Milhazes' paintings successfully fuse elements of her own background with that of other cultures.
Along with looking to her native Brazil and South America for inspiration, Milhazes directly considered the work of European Modernists such as Henri Matisse, Fernand Leger and Robert Delauney in her formative years. The artist sees herself as part of a world art community constantly in "dialogue" with contemporary artists such as Franz Ackermann, Christopher Wool, Philip Taaffe and Peter Halley. While their artistic styles, and life experiences, may be very different, Milhazes finds a shared interest in "color, construction, fantasy, pop decorative art, and a kind of surrealism too" (Ibid, p. 137). As reflections of her life experience and heritage, Milhazes' pictures are just as much about the process as the outcome. Painting in a silent studio Milhazes allows composition to grow organically as she works in layers, "I prefer the rhythm of the painting as I'm working on it; I like to listen only to it, and without distraction" (Ibid, p. 137)
In the present painting, Milhazes successfully blends aesthetic qualities of the iconic Hispanic imagery of the Virgin of Guadalupe with her own artistic ideology. In this kaleidoscopic vision, a composition consisting of a layered series of concentric ovals mimics the shape and essence of the mandorla depicted around the Virgin. In Milhazes' characteristic style, Fresca e Disposta como uma Compota is by no means static, but rather visually stimulating, energetic and dynamic in its organic progression; vibrant colors in undulating forms lead the eye around the canvas to encounter rosettes and bands of gold metallic paint along the way. Bundles of roses tucked between the folds of color not only incorporate an image found in many of the artist's paintings, but further enhance the possible connection to the iconic depiction of the patron saint of "New Spain". As evident in the present lot, Beatriz Milhazes breathes a renewed contemporary energy into this historic cultural imagery.