Transfiguration: sculptures that transform space – Joana Vasconcelos 📷 Málaga – Spain
Visits to museums, especially when I’m surrounded by so many tourists, can sometimes be quite overwhelming, because you don’t know what to expect and the impact can be immense. Experiencing that impact alongside so many other people creates an immense energy within the vast exhibition halls.
The Picasso Museum hosted an extraordinary exhibition, brimming with colour and style. This exhibition ended recently, and I had the chance to visit during its final days to enjoy it. I knew there was something worth seeing, but I didn’t want to form any preconceptions before entering the gallery; I preferred the experience of surprise and to let what I saw amaze me, and that’s exactly what happened.
The exhibition is called ‘Transfiguration’ and the artist is Joana Vasconcelos; it was spread across two parts of the museum, the first part on the ground floor and the second in the museum’s inner courtyard. At first, when I saw what was in that courtyard, I thought it was the start of the exhibition, but then I realised it was the end of the tour. Be that as it may, it was an experience I’d never had before; that’s why living in this city brings me so much joy and allows me to be surprised.
So I’ll take you through the exhibition in the order intended by the museum and the artist: first entering the large hall on the first floor, where, upon seeing such an enormous work of art suspended from the ceiling, I stood still, gazing at it all, and everyone else entering did the same; it was like a collective surprise, and you could really feel it in the air.
Inside the hall there was a lot of information, and I had to work out what each piece corresponded to. This first hall, which is the largest, was called ‘Soft Architecture and the Transfiguration of Space’, and that is where this large textile work was located. It is called ‘Enchanted Forest of the Year 2024’. It is made from hand-crocheted wool, fabrics, embellishments, LEDs, polyester, microcontrollers, a power supply and plywood. This work was created in collaboration with Dios, Paris. It constitutes the entire collection of works in the room.
The transfiguration extends from the large object into the space itself. The artist’s transformation of everyday objects, symbols and materials extends to the museum’s architecture.
Suspended in the large hall is a Valkyrie called ‘Valkyrie Marina Rinaldi’, the title of the work, inspired by figures from Norse mythology. It is a large textile structure combining crochet, woven fabrics and ornaments to form a vast sculpture that appears to expand.
This piece is marvellous; I explored it in its entirety, taking photos from various angles and also of the different materials it contained. I couldn’t believe the size of the piece and could only think of the time it must have taken to create it.
The forms created the illusion of unfolding across the architecture of the space, blurring its boundaries. The work contained fans, power supplies and cables; it was also produced with sponsorship from Marina Rinaldi.
Another of the works on display in the large hall was one entitled ‘Gestalt’, 2017, made from hand-crocheted wool, polyester on canvas, a frame gilded with gold leaf and plywood.
I noticed that people were queuing in one area of the main hall, and as I approached, I discovered more than I’d expected to see, a truly wonderful experience. This area was titled ‘Landscape, Perception and Experience’.
‘Enchanted Forest’ is an installation that the museum had set up in a very special way, creating an immersive environment where visitors become part of the artwork, and I can assure you that was indeed the case. There was a limited capacity for entry into that dark room, where what could be seen went beyond the senses.
Throughout that room, whose walls were black and which was pitch-black, there were textile shapes suspended from the ceiling, shaped like teardrops and illuminated by small lights, thus creating a fantasy landscape, like an imaginary, enchanted forest. There was a sense of movement and expansion, even though the forms were still, whilst the small lights flickered on and off, altering the atmosphere; this, combined with the colours and textures, gave the impression that the surroundings were shifting. Furthermore, there was very soft music playing as I walked amongst the forms, so all of us who were there became part of that forest.
The forms created from textile materials take on a spatial dimension and shape the space around them like an immersive landscape. I was able to touch those forms; they were soft and supple. It was a marvellous experience; not only could I look and observe, but I could walk amongst them, touch them, be part of it all, an immersive experience, as the text I read before entering described it, an incredible sensory experience. It really felt intense.
Then there was another room, where, upon entering, I could see a huge chandelier suspended in a dark setting, albeit one with plenty of lighting. The title of the piece was Bizet and it was constructed from black velvet ribbons and multicoloured plastic pendants. The black velvet made all the difference and created a unique texture. It was a sculpture steeped in resonance, because whilst I was looking at it, beautiful music was playing, creating an atmosphere just as unique as in the previous room.
I found it incredible to see all these monumental works strips, textiles and flexible elements which made the surroundings seem to expand and occupied the space they were in, enveloping it. That is why the art exhibition is called ‘Transfiguration’, because it alters the relationship between the body, space and the artwork.
Leaving those enormous rooms, on the ground floor of the museum, in the middle of its inner courtyard, the art exhibition continued with a sculpture called ‘Betty Boop’, constructed from metal household utensils that appeared to have been assembled. It was incredible to see everyday materials that one finds in the kitchen transformed into a sculpture, in this case, a woman’s high-heeled shoe of great visual appeal.
Through this entire exhibition, and I must say it is a very original one, the artist reimagines everyday domestic objects and those from popular culture, imbuing them with novel and striking symbolic meanings.
I can assure you I’ve never seen anything like it, and just when I think there’s nothing new or original out there, an exhibition always comes along to prove me wrong. It has been a wonderful sensory journey; I left the museum with a big smile and a lovely feeling inside me.
Thank you very much for joining me today; warm regards to you all, see you soon.
Amonet.
All photographs are my own.
Separators created by me in Photoshop.
Used translator Deepl.com free version.
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