Heterotopia, Sensorial Solitude, and CASALONTANA
When we posted the ‘submissions open’ flyer on Instagram, it’s not like we hadn’t expected people to submit their artwork. But, we had no idea of the volume of artists who would, or the international reach the post would get. In just under a week, our inbox and our Instagram DM’s were flooded with 300+ artists, all unique with their artist statements and styles. To say we were overwhelmed with fantastic work to look through would be an understatement (in fact, we’re still going through the submissions to date).
We were lucky enough to reach out and offer representation to five artists so far this year, including Kai Lum (Asheville, NC), EZEDIRE (Abuja, Nigeria), and whom we’re writing about today: Hernán Pacheco, or CASALONTANA.
Hernán hails from Spain, specifically Extremadura, in a town called Cáceres. Cáceres is built on the footprint of an ancient Roman village, and continues to be a testament to the cultural intersections and occupations of varying European cultures. Living in Cáceres, the artistic influence is around you constantly. It’s nestled into a valley of the Sierra de la Mosca mountain range, with Gothic and Renaissance architecture, cobbled Medieval paths, sun-soaked flora, and completely surrounded by 12th century Moorish walls. It’s not hard to believe that a creative mind like CASALONTANA’s has thrived there.
Upon seeing his submission, we were entranced with the warmth that exudes from the work. Your gaze adjusts to abstraction to create the figurative in the exuberant hues of “Summer”, and can comfortably contemplate your own sensorial experiences through “Preposition #2” and “Preposition #6”. His reverence for the old masters and respect for the material he creates on translates seamlessly across languages and oceans alike.
CASALONTANA’s CV was impressive to say the least, as an art school graduate and current PHD candidate in Extremadura, along with a lengthy list of shows. His extensive knowledge and substantial reference arsenal is prevalent in his abstract work, though he also delves into the figurative and traditional. His abstract work has taken the forefront of his creative expression as of recent, the artist explains the viewer “directly experiences the paradox of the intangible made tangible.” The idea of a consistent flux, the changing of the times and remains of ideas corroborate in abstraction. A common motif in his work is the concept of Heterotopia, coined by philosopher Michel Foucault, known as the idea of “worlds within worlds”, where they (worlds) are both similar and contrasting, upsetting and elevating.
CASALONTANA’s work often depicts liminal, uncanny spaces that are somehow universal. “I speak of heterotopia in the Foucauldian sense, and also of the critique of the present moment in the crisis of the image and the overabundance of stimuli and information. Yes, Walter Benjamin, but also William Burroughs. Faced with this, the solitude of the studio and the sensations: the smell of the canvas, the very expanse of the paint, the fragile, suspended nature of the pigments, perhaps even the vulnerability of the painting itself.”
CASALONTANA toys with the contrast of technology, of overstimulation and abundance in our hands at all hours of the day versus curated silence and the analogue. This concept comes through in his rough humanistic brushwork, in the contrast of his muted pastels and bright hues on canvas. While “Preposition #2” and “Preposition #6” are traditionally stretched canvases, “Summer” is considered a ‘disruptive canvas’, designed to remain un-stretched and fully encompass the architecture of each space it adorns. Each work pushes the viewer to recall their own memories and senses, while CASALONTANA nostalgically establishes that feeling with acrylic and wax. The viewer has a moment of sensorial solitude, a unique experience with each work irreplicable by other eyes or minds. As the viewer regards the pieces, one could ask, What does our fast paced world, with consistent, harsh contrast and overflowing information, look like in stillness?
Sending and receiving artwork internationally is no easy feat, especially with current administration. Thankfully, after nearly a month of correspondence, the three works arrived safely in Atlanta. His continued patience and willingness to push through international boundaries to share his creative vision is more than admirable. As an artist himself, Anderson Smith knows showcasing your work is the most difficult part of it- how to get galleries to believe in your and your art has always been a gate-kept piece of knowledge. Now being on the other side, Anderson takes extra care in empathetic selection for representation. “I select for representation based on feel- based on the way I, as an artist, would want to be seen.”
We never search out specifics or know exactly what we’re looking for, the work tells us. So when going through the submissions with the gallery team, when CASALONTANA jumped out at Anderson through the screen, he seemed to say “You’ve been looking for me, and here I am!”
And here they finally are, all three CASALONTANA pieces in Gallery Anderson Smith. We simply could not be happier with them, or more excited for our gallery-goers and collectors to witness them in the gallery. Extremadura news outlets like el Periódico have added more hype to the collaboration, you can read the feature here. From Cáceres to Atlanta, CASALONTANA is here to shake things up.
Follow CASALONTANA here.