Bernardi Roig: El coleccionista de obsesiones
Museo Lázaro Galdiano
Text: Tabea von Ow
What a
great sensation: The Museo Lázaro Galdiano in Madrid, well known for its
delicate collection of fine art by some of the greatest Spanish masters, allows
a contemporary artist to use its premises as exhibition-space for the first time.
And that is indeed a successful premiere!
In the
context of the museum’s endeavour of making “coleccionismo” (collecting) a
subject of discussion as a tribute to its founder and passionate collector José
Lázaro Galdiano, Spanish artist Bernardí Roig’s work “el coleccionista de
obsesiones” is the perfect match. The work of Roig picks up the concept of the
artist being obsessed by trying to embody the collection of ideas in his mind,
and at the same time expressing these obsessions in the process of making the
artwork. By placing his objects – mainly simple white sculptures of men accentuated
with different sources of light – in the common exhibition space or the garden of
the museum, Roig integrates his art gallantly into the museum’s classical architecture
and surroundings. At first sight, the unprepared visitor might not even notice
the presence of an object and Roig enhances this effect by hiding or including
it in the rest of the collection. For instance does he use the basement of the
museum to position one of his statues, which makes the public wonder whether
the way is wrong and induces a feeling of forlornness and unease. Another
example for this technique is the use of a glass cabinet equal to the others in
the museum with the intention to make the objects look like pieces of the
permanent exhibition. And not to forget the statues outside, one of which is
hanging on top of a tree and another which lies under a bush like a thrown away
cadaver, both lit by a very precisely focused spotlight, not easy to be
discovered and quite unsettling at first but showing the garden as an object
that deserves to be regarded just as much as the inside of the building. Thus,
the artist is blurring the borders between his work and the common exhibition, connecting
the two worlds of the contemporary and the classical and creates a bond between
what is said to be so totally different. To the visitor, the museum suddenly
appears in a very different light as the artist points out to usually unrecognized
places such as the basement or a hidden staircase. This is a good way to take a
bit of the embossed, elitist aura that often surrounds museums, part of the
reason why a lot of people don’t set foot in such locations. But according to
Roig, it’s just another building after all, and no matter how noble it might be,
the basement is always dark and dusty. Then again, Roig’s pieces are more complex
as just to work in favour of the hosting institution. His statue blocking the
way to one room of the museum for instance makes the public reflect on the use
of a visit to the museum, on the necessity of just hurrying through an exhibition
rapidly in order to be able to see all the artworks and every room of the
place. Blocking the way makes the people want to see a place even more, a hint
on mankind’s cupidity for sensation and obsession of seeing things. But does looking
at something mean it is actually “seen”? Roig doesn’t give us any answers, but
he asks a lot of questions – essential questions about today’s artworld, which
is so rich in ideas, concepts and theories that it is refreshing to find
something, that is on one hand full of sophisticated, interesting details but
still keeps a plain, pure sobriety rather than to drown out the fun there
should always be when looking at art, be it classical or contemporary.
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