Redox o no Redox

About Redox o no Redox

Young and semi-naked bodies defined the artistic creation of Yamir Izquierdo (Artemisa, 1988) a few years ago. Past and present have merged in the impressive anatomical studies of his series Almas revestidas (2016-), since the concern for what is lasting or perishable is also a constant in his work. Human fragility appears, protected or hidden, under imposing physiognomic and metallic armor, executed with intentional technical virtuosity. With the return to “tradition,” he questions the current assumptions regarding the “contemporaneity” of the artistic work. The forced postures of his characters denounce the artificialities of this time.

Since then, Man-Metal-Time has constituted his Holy Trinity. However, the hardness, durability, and transcendence of each element – as well as their possible interrelation – drive their new ideo-aesthetic approaches: human beings will not survive steel; iron will not resist forever; art (good art) is eternal… The series Redox or not Redox (2018-) is based on the principle that life, in itself, is a reduction-oxidation phenomenon. Breathing would be impossible without oxygen and this is the best oxidizing agent there is. For this reason, the corrosion process is natural and spontaneous; in fact, it is the return of the metal to its natural state (rust). A chemical reaction becomes physical, affecting the behavior or biological composition of the protagonists. Now, Time unifies Metal with Man; figure and background are one. Their canvases/bodies/steels blister, fracture, and age.

For him, creation – as an essential fragment of human existence – can experience deterioration and/or seek its form of greatest stability, that is, corrode. For this reason, he (re)approaches transcendental works and artistic styles in the History of Art. Almost without thinking about it, the creator stops being an observer of his environment and becomes a data collector of his daily life. Scientific procedures become unavoidable during his investigations and are reflected, in a certain way, in his creation.
Under these conditions, Anticorrosive Painting brings together a selection of his most recent drawings and paintings, with the purpose of inhibiting the molding of the material (art) by protecting the material (trade).