Diango Hernández. Desideri di luce. Rifrazioni: MUSEUM EXHIBITION | Galleria e Museo San Fedele

 

The exhibition unfolds as a singular installation with its guiding thread being light. The works—10 Cantos de Sirenas, 5 All Hands, some paintings on refraction, 3 sculptures, some polaroids, and a 16th-century crucifix—follow a narrative logic that relates light and desire. Thus, the sequence All Hands—which presents hands portrayed in search of light—has a wooden crucifix as its focal point, signifying that human existence is to be interpreted in the light of transcendence, of an absolute. In this case, of a man who is the "light of the world."

 

At the heart of the exhibition project, some oil paintings reveal luminous spaces filtered as if through windows with translucent and corrugated glass, whose frames take the form of a cross. Even though we do not precisely see those places that appear blurred and distant, we sense the quiet peace of a beyond, as if we were standing before the diaphragm of the undulating motion of a threshold to cross, of a watery veil to break through as we dive into that light. Thus, at the entrance of the Gallery, the presence of a sculpture alludes to a tree behind which is placed a backdrop of four large abstract canvases in shades of green and blue, reminiscent of the fluidity of wonderful marine depths (the artist is famous for his research into Olaism, the language of the sea), but also the spaces of a luminous garden whose tree branches are caressed by the wind. If we follow the biblical symbolism of the celestial Jerusalem, that sculpture may allude to the tree of life expressing the deepest desires inscribed in the human being to be fruitful, to heal from physical and moral illnesses, to put an end to the experience of pain. The exhibition continues with a small space entirely covered by some canvases of Cantos de Sirenas, painted in vivid red hues: here, we are invited to experience the immersive sensation of a suggestive "chromatic chapel." Finally, the exhibition is completed with a painting on the theme of the "threshold" placed in the San Fedele Museum and specially created for the occasion.

 

 

 

Diango Hernández (Cuba, 1970) Diango Hernández, in the early 1990s, during the economic crisis triggered by the fall of the Soviet Union, participated in various collective initiatives within the Cuban cultural scene. Hernández co-founded, together with Francis Acea, Ordo Amoris Cabinet (OAC). The artistic duo quickly gained recognition, exhibiting throughout Europe and North America. In the early 2000s, he moved to Europe where he continued his research and became one of the main representatives of the American conceptual heritage. In 2009, he won the Rubens Prize for his outstanding contribution to the field of art. His works have been exhibited worldwide and explore themes such as cultural identity and the impact of politics on everyday life. The Rubens Prize is one of the highest recognitions and rewards artists who have made a significant impact in the art world through their art and creativity. His works have been the subject of several solo exhibitions at the Kunsthalle Basel (2006) and at the Neuer Aachener Kunstverein (2007). Additionally, he exhibited his works at the Arsenale as part of the 51st Venice Biennale and participated in the Sydney Biennale and the São Paulo Biennale in 2006. He was acclaimed by critics for "Losing You Tonight" at the Museum für Gegenwartskunst in Siegen (2009), and in 2010, two installations were included in "The New Décor" at the Hayward Gallery in London. In 2011-2012, the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MART) in Rovereto presented Hernández's solo show "Living Room, a Survey." His work has been the subject of several solo exhibitions, including: "The New Man and the New Woman" at Marlborough Contemporary in London (2013); "Socialist Nature" at the Landesgalerie in Linz (2014); Kunsthalle Munster in 2015; "Theoretical Beach" at the Museum Morsbroich in Leverkusen (2016).