Trained monkeys, 2023

“Macacos amestrados” keeps the same path of “Society of the Spectacle” series, inspired on Guy Debord’s text with the same title. 

Here, trained monkeys share the paintings space with triangles that, as in other works by Beatriz, refer to the refugees campsites of Greece or Calais but with a happy disposition: these symbolize alienation by the spectacle, the light and the noise that prevents us from seeing and hearing clearly. These monkeys are, as Debord puts it, entertainers that answer to the demands of a world increasingly based on market values, where men move away from nature and get closer to that of machines.

About this series of work, writes Simão Bolívar:

A shameless assemblage that echoes her emotions, the chaos installed in her studio and the indomitable desire to communicate. Daily life doesn’t stop being contaminated by the outside world, and despite the isolation of life in the countryside, the notion that the individual’s existence doesn’t extinguish itself in its own bubble, finds an answer in her painting and drawing. Not a complete answer or solution to the world’s problems, but certain that she cannot divert her attention. With her own sensitivity and conscious that her language will find, as an interlocutor, impact on her reality.

Her body of work, following the continuous investigation in which drawing and collage on paper are used as the preferred means of representation, set the tone for this exhibition. Guy Debord’s “Society of the Spectacle” is the starting point for reflecting on the spiritual weakness of the world population subjected to a theatricalization where the media are the preferred channels of alienation. She does not intend social criticism but she  does not  act passively about what surrounds us.

The generosity with which she shares her weaknesses, her / our human condition through fragments. A patchwork that will never be complete and is in constant mutation. Fictional allegory reflecting the moment and the dystopian reality we live in. An amalgam of juxtaposed elements that bring pictorial richness to a combination of materials and somewhat noisy shapes. An  untampered balance that either creates tension or reassures us. Intentional gestures that mix with chance. Without fear of making mistakes and without formulas, they seek a fine line of harmony. These are not the words that should help to demystify the content. The urgency to find answers remains with the observer. 

Oct. 2020

Simão Bolívar