Date: 2014
Author: Martim Brion
I am the son of two artists, and I’ve always been somewhat reluctant to get too involved in the arts scene and focus too much on the subject. However, some interest must have remained, and in recent years I’ve been getting back into it. So much so that, three years after I started taking photographs and creating sculptures, this opportunity arose at Artistas Unidos, and I decided it was a good time to showcase my work.
I enjoy what I’m doing, as it makes me reflect on what I like and what I don’t like, what interests me, or what frightens me, and quite simply because creating something from a point of view, an idea or a concept is very rewarding. It’s almost addictive. It also offers a tremendous sense of freedom, given that the only things stopping us from doing something – or not – are the limits of our imagination, which are often self-imposed, or the physical limitations of the materials. The former being by far the more decisive factor.
I believe that the visual arts are, quite simply and fundamentally, the materialisation of ideas, concepts, feelings, issues, and themes by the artist, for the artist and the public. Since an artist without an audience is not an artist, art is a social endeavour. This materialisation may take place either before or after the abstract element has already been defined or recognised/identified.
This exhibition and these works are, in essence, a manifestation of ideas and feelings. They mark my return to the world of the arts in general and my concrete first steps as someone keen to develop their artistic side professionally. The works reflect my interest in form, colour and dimensionality and how these influence one another when an object takes on a certain shape and adopts a particular colour – in the case of the sculptures – or when the object is an image of a detail or a three-dimensional object which, through the capture of its image, acquires a two-dimensional aspect, and how, once again, this affects the colour and form of that photographed object. And finally, and most importantly, how these transformations and relationships affect our perspective and understanding of that object. However, I always believe that the object, the artwork, must always possess a precise sense of form and be sufficient in itself; that the viewer should be captivated and intrigued and that it should make them think or question; that the work should have balance and not require an explanatory text alongside it to achieve this effect. The work stands on its own.
The influence of other artists is undeniable in any work of art, even if it is subconscious; in this case, my greatest influences come from a very diverse range of artists. Artists who focus primarily on colour and form, as well as on achieving that balance in their work. However, I think it is too early for me to identify with a particular group or school of thought.
Martim Brion 