Damian Ortega: "Visual Pastoral"

The "Visual Pastoral" environmental installation was exhibited from November 13, 2008, to February 9, 2009, in Space 315 of the South Gallery at the Centre Pompidou. Born in 1967, D. Ortega is currently one of the most representative artists from Mexico in South America. He gained fame with his work "Cosmic Thing" at the 50th Venice Biennale in May 2003, where he dismembered a Volkswagen Beetle and suspended it in mid-air, deconstructing objects of consumer society through extreme humor and irony. Starting with political cartoons, Ortega’s art presents a playful sensibility, blending unique tastes through clever linguistic techniques. His exploration is based on environmental installations and photography; his works often use mundane materials to reveal their potential for continuous transformation. Under the characteristics of minimalist sculpture, he questions the utopian forms of modern architecture. In the "Visual Pastoral" environmental space installation, the artist composed objects (resembling chemical molecules) out of colorful plastics, filling the entire space from large to small. Upon entering, viewers can see a magnificent perspective ranging from large to small amidst the vibrant colors, while the other end offers a perspective from small to large. Rows of people can wander through the work. At the back wall, a small window allows viewers to observe the miniature and gaze at the whole, prompting a comparison between their inherent viewpoints and the constructed function of the work itself.

Damian Ortega proposes not just objects, but bodily experiences. Like recent discoveries in brain science, images formed in the mind suggest that lines do not exist; only form and color are facts, and color perception precedes form. Clearly, this work establishes reality as a problem, highlighting the vast difference between reality perceived by the eye and the brain, raising issues regarding human vision, visual effects, and illusions. It invites people to transcend their object experience into another level of possibility. This involves not just materials, the universe, and language, but also awareness, or the politics and society of the capitalist world. The "Visual Pastoral" exhibition invites audiences not only to look seriously with their eyes, but also to view what they believe they have discovered from a different angle.