New Genres: Borges Cultural Center

The strange world of Renata Schussheim at the Borges Cultural Center

July 20, 2023 | nadiaevangelina

"Fulguraciones" is a solo exhibition by Argentine artist and set designer Renata Schussheim held at the Borges Cultural Center. Schussheim exhibits sculptures of ethereal swimmers suspended in the dome of the building, the most beautiful space in this place. The exhibition continues in the Berni Pavilion, where she exhibits large-scale intervened photographs showing strange men disguised as polar bears who, in turn, are photographed with young and old. According to the artist, it is the strangest exhibition she has ever done.

Renata Schussheim

From a conceptual point of view, "Fulguraciones" is a crossroads where the depth of the sea rises, feeding back the mystery of life with its lights and shadows. On the one hand, the swimmers made in 3D printing are placed in a spiral and hand-painted by the artist which surprise both for their realism and for their subtle and silent character. These delicate figures are floating surrounded by bubbles and illuminated by sunlight peeking through the glazed dome. The pastel colors of the swimmers blend perfectly with the idea of "purity" of the aquatic and luminous environment.

In contrast, the room in the Berni Pavilion is characterized by a space painted entirely in gray with 22 large black and white photographs intervened by Schussheim. In the images, we see men dressed as polar bears posing with different people, like typical vacation souvenirs. The curious thing is that the polar bears are on the beach, out of their habitat. Another aspect that generates a strangeness in the viewer is that the surrealistic style images are real. The artist extracted the original photographs from the Internet from which she manually modified the bears' faces to make them look sinister.

Renata Schussheim

The contrast between freedom and luminosity in the dark universe is evident. The bridge between these two fantasy worlds created by Schussheim is provided by three small sculptures: one of a solitary polar bear and two of the swimmers. Accompanying the experience is a continuous, slow-motion video of a giant wave about to break. The soundtrack of the room and the video is by Damián Laplace.

To enter this exhibition is to immerse oneself in a different world. More than a visit, it is a profound experience destined to be remembered forever, as happens when something challenges us from a very deep place that perhaps we cannot explain with words because the mystery of emotions is reluctant to be verbalized.

Renata Schussheim

"Fulguraciones"

Location: Borges Cultural Center, Viamonte 525, C1053 CABA, Buenos Aires (Argentina)

Opening Date: 19th April 2023

End Date: 2nd July 2023

Working hours: Wednesday-Sunday: 14pm to 20 pm

Official website: https://centroculturalborges.gob.ar/

https://www.instagram.com/centroborges/

Artist:

Renata Schussheim

Acrylic

"Acrilia": Acrylic Microworlds by Ana Rascovsky

June 22, 2023 | nadiaevangelina

"Acrilia" is the solo exhibition of Argentine architect Ana Rascovsky at the Borges Cultural Center, located in the heart of downtown Buenos Aires. The artist creates a world of fantasy, from the children's imaginary and the search for the future, from a hundred pieces and models made with scraps and leftovers of acrylic that re-signify the worldviews of fairy tales and the dispute between nature, man, and technology.

Ana Rascovsky

Curated by Máximo Jacoby, with music by Gonzalo Córdoba and lighting by Arturo Peruzzotti and Freddy Gotlib, "Acrilia" is a series of installations, deployed in the space on tables and walls, which form scenes connected to each other with a fable as a narrative that the viewer will explore as he or she walks through the room. A large part of the work is also the lighting.

Rascovsky configures a play space that exposes an apocalyptic vision of the world. According to the artist, the exhibition aims to show the findings discovered during the Ataraxia expedition, led by scientist Dr. Lina Schultz, in the remote caves of Kavac, located in northern Venezuela. The specimens on display in this exhibition represent the last descendants of an extinct civilization that developed in the region between 2000 and 2020: Acrilia. These specimens, of which 216 specimens from the same kingdom (Animalia) have been discovered, present an unprecedented variation in their kind.

To enter Acrilia is to enter the future and, at the same time, to return to the past; a past that is not historical but infantile, that brings us back to something of our own but forgotten. Upon entering, behind dark curtains that do not let us see inside the room, the spectator encounters characters from fables, mushrooms, enchanted forests in miniature, a circus, an amusement park, and a zoo. The material used is composed of laser-cut acrylic that forms connected scenes that tell a story.

Rascovsky also says that in her work as an architect, she is dedicated to creating real, concrete, solid worlds with structural problems and real-life impact. In her words, "In my artistic work, on the other hand, I free myself from these restrictions to create worlds that are constructed through fiction. The characters are invented or brought from other references from the world of imagination such as literature, cinema, comics, and music. Acrylic is a material that has always been present in my family history. My mother once produced acrylic key chains that I adored".