“By
blending tradition and modernity, abstract and figurative, I
hope to tell the tale of two unique places that have long been considered
crossroads of civilization.”
--Fedele
Spadafora
Conversation
What is place?
Is it where we are on a GPS? Is it a location in space-time of which we
can barely grasp the nature, or simply what we see around us at the moment?
For each of us, where we are is a spot on a unique
continuum. The time line of an individual life travels through each location,
and the nature of the place and its position on that line is only perceived,
understood, and given character in relation to the rest of the line, by the
person engaged in contemplating being there.
In a recent series of paintings, New York artist
Fedele Spadafora, already known for intimate portrayals of the inner life of the
City, explores and evokes his captured impressions of two faraway places that spurred
his interest and imagination.
“In
these new paintings I am exploring memory and impressions set in the
post-revolutionary societies of Tunisia (2010) and the Czech Republic (1989),
where I observed these monumental moments in world history firsthand,” says
Spadafora, who lived in Prague for 6 years and now spends time in Tunisia, the
homeland of his wife, photographer Aida Ben Hamouda. “Drawing upon these
experiences, coupled with imagination, I'm filling my canvases with vivid
colors and designs that evoke references to the transformative works of Paul
Klee in Tunisia, along with heavier and darker atmospheres calling to mind the
graphic works of Bruno Schultz. “
Spadafora approached these works in various ways –
some were plein air paintings, others studio paintings created from field
studies, photographs and/or memory. The common palette, subtle yet distinctive,
is a visual through line clearly stating that these works belong together in a
world that is very real, yet not like any we have ever seen. But that is not
the first characteristic that strikes the viewer and impels us to find
coherence in the group. There is a sense, upon entering the space with these
paintings, that you have entered a story because, in fact, you have.
The Bridge
Seeing in the artist’s studio that these works pulled
together visions from across his travels in space-time to bring you to an
impossible landscape, I recalled a term from my early
studies in film – creative geography. It refers to the practice of editing
together footage from more than one location in such a way that they appear to
be contiguous, thus making real for the audience a location that only exists in
the film.
In this case, the geography being depicted is real
and whole in the mind of the artist. Through his gifts and efforts we are able
to actually see and respond to his unique vision of these pivotal places in his
life. As the auteur of this body of work, Spadafora composed a visual
intertextuality that incorporates these locations into one world. We are
invited to leap into this world, to experience his singular memory.
The smaller work serving as the point of entry to
this intention, “The Bridge, ” is an abstracted representation of the Charles Bridge in Prague designated
by the artist to fill just that need: “In this piece
I wanted to show the mark making impulse that I started in the larger pieces in
a reduced and simple form. The concept of the bridge is important to me. There
are things that need to be connected,” he explains. “The bridge is a kind
of self portrait as I, the artist, am what connects these works … they are my
experiences. I have had a foot in both civilizations.”
Phase IV
While bringing together a group of paintings into one seamless,
transparent visual narrative, Spadafora stepped slightly out of frame to
punctuate the series with 2 small canvases that, while readable as part of the
whole also underline and acknowledge the connection between how this series
works and filmic paradigms by depicting images from films of the speculative
fiction genre – “Phase IV,” from the eponymous 1974 sci-fi film, and “Tusken
Raider” from the Star Wars canon of George Lucas. Despite being twice removed
from what we call “real” (by virtue of being set in the invented reality of
movies, plus, in this case, realities that are unlike our own), they are as
concrete and believable as the other works, and perhaps even more so –
emphasizing the power of art to suspend disbelief, heighten experience and
transform perception.
Falling Star in Djerba Sky (study)
An artist can transform even his own perception during the
exploration of subject.
Another small piece, “Falling Star
in Djerba Sky,” was originally imagined as “as an apocalyptic event bringing
mass destruction.” In contemplation of Tunisia
and the events of the Arab Spring (he depicts a pivotal tragic act, the
self-immolation of a Tunisian street vendor in protest of his brutal treatment
by the government, in another canvas), Spadafora came to see it as more of an
event that alters the consciousness of the people. “In Muslim tradition, it
is said that demons can be found listening at the gates of heaven where
they hope to acquire fragments of knowledge of things that are to happen
in the future. This knowledge can be used against humanity,” he said. “When
seen by angels, these demons are pelted by shooting stars to drive them away.”
Linda DiGusta
New York City, March, 2013
Fedele Spadafora
New Paintings
Slag Contemporary, Bushwick
56 Bogart Street
March 22-April 20, 2013
Opening reception: March 22, 6-9 p.m.
Falling Star in Djerba Sky (triptych)
all images courtesy and (c) Fedele Spadafora, all rights reserved
