Sweets are everywhere in every colour. Art can be sweet and shared as a community. For this week's post we are diving into the world of simplicity and the meaning of art as a community.
Minimalism in contemporary art could be seen as a concrete form of expression, where it transmits its message directly without the need for further research. The ability to create something minimalist requires a fully discern in which the artwork is contextually inserted in, moreover a complete comprehension of the subject leaving behind non-essential figures that may distort the artwork’s meaning. Félix González-Torres showcases in his minimalist installations that art both needs to be creative and contextual.
“Above all else, it is about leaving a mark that I existed: I was here. I was hungry. I was defeated. I was happy. I was sad. I was in love. I was afraid. I was hopeful. I had an idea and I had a good purpose and that's why I made works of art..”
Born in Cuba, but lived most of his life in the United States, Torres is an artist known for being gay and expressing the copes that AIDS caused in his life as a gay man. Being able to express and transmit his very own personal thoughts, the kind that was considered and still are huge taboos in our society. It was not “socially” acceptable to be homosexual, AIDS at the time was strictly known to be the “gay disease”.
The fact that Torres was gay and expressed that as an artist certainly was not invited to a lot of people back in history. His desire to create something meaningful with an important cause was greater than his fear of being exposed. Torres creates beautiful minimalist and contextual installations, an icon for the continuous fight in human rights for the LGBTQ+ community. He demonstrates love and compassion for people who marked his life, either his mother or his partner both made him stronger and perseverant in being an artist and expressing his pain through it.
Torres throughout his works touches on different themes that connect directly to his personal life memories. He touches on important themes such as responsibility, AIDS, being an openly gay man and, dealing with death. The simplicity of his work differs from the rich social context that Torres applies to his artworks, his “work is more like poetry applies to his artworks, his “work is more like poetry like a poet, he does not reinvent language with each work, but rather utilises available materials as if they were words, recombining his images and forms to create very personal works related to love and loss” (S.H. & C.F.). Through the intense pain from the loss of his mother and partner, or from the love and important memories that he had from the past, Torres is able to recover from all this pain and transmit it to his art practice, creating art through personal memories.
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