Carolina Sardi: MICROCOSMS
February 18 - April 1, 2023
Pan American Art Projects is pleased to announce Microcosms, a solo exhibition of new works by Carolina Sardi. curated by Fernanda Torcida. Microcosms will be on view from February 18 of 2023, with an opening reception for the artist on Saturday February 18, from 6 to 9 pm.
Carolina Sardi’s latest body of work is based on wandering ideas noted in her sketchbooks throughout these past years. Themes of separation and human connections, micro and macro cosmos, fragility and suspension, nature, primitivism, and history are a part of the concepts behind those drawings.
Although Sardi’s preferred material is metal, her sculptures and installations have an organic sensibility that reflects those interests in the human condition and the basic interactions of life.
The reference to geometry, natural shapes and the use of positive and negative spaces are her response to a search for a balance between opposites. Negative spaces represent a place to breathe, a pause, much like those small moments of silence found in music, where without them it would be only noise. The void portrays the distances and separation, the feeling of longing for what is missing.
Those spaces allow the viewer to see the particularity of each shape that inhabits each composition. Each space is unique, and every element of the whole is different; while keeping their individuality they also maintain their presence inside the totality. They represent the microcosm within the macrocosm of the composition.
The organic shapes used are directly related to Nature, essential shapes such as eggs or cells make up entire organisms. The use of stone as foundations alludes to primitive forms of construction, geometry and mathematics are behind each composition as a necessary ground to develop the work.
Mostly working with steel: cutting, welding and grinding the material in order to achieve the desired sensitivity for each piece. Steel as material carries the history of an industrial past, however it can be crafted into a refined material. Although usually painting her pieces, Sardi chose to leave the material raw and exposed, painted with nothing but the patina of the material itself. In the instances where paint is employed, it is in a monochromatic hue in order to emphasize the strength of each shape and the crudeness of the material itself.
Wall sculptures are separated from the surfaces by a small distance, creating a floating effect that is enhanced by light and shadows. The blank walls become the medium and support for each of these installations. The boundaries between the figurative and abstraction are skewed, creating an ongoing dialog and tension between subjects and messages. The interaction with the spectator brings forth multiple ways of reading each composition.
Sardi’s ever lasting attraction to pure form has led her to explore the combination of those forms in a single piece, constructing concepts and ideas. The conceptual nature of the works is as important as the aesthetic image, however always leaving the artwork open to interpretation of the viewer.
