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Outcomes of the search and the coherence
Claudia Hakim. From Orbitas Orgánicas (Organic Orbits) series, 2008. 36’ x 17” diameter. Photo Oscar Monsalve. Courtesy of the artist and Etra Fine Art
Standing before the work of Claudia Hakim, I cannot help but think of the great constructivists of the 20th Century, such as Kasimir Malevitch, who with similar techniques and materials proposed “the suprematism of nonobjectivity,” Naum Gabo with his heads and subsequent kinetic developments, and the British artist, Victor Pasmore, with his magnificent geometric abstractions, who, by establishing some paradigms associated with mechanics, industry, technology and even everyday items, such as, the “ready made” pieces of Marcel Duchamp, likewise redefine relationships between a work of art and its elements, its space, its purpose, and, of course, its spectator and even its threshold of artistry, In summary, it is impossible for me not to evoke a kind of need, arising from the artist’s ability, and, although constant, seldom expressed with such brilliance, to mold something that is part of a concrete and quantifiable dimension and transform it into beauty.
Beyond possible invocations and speculation regarding influences or concurrences, both absolutely valid in the realm of art, the oeuvre of the Colombian sculptor, at times strange, can also produce a peculiar sense of familiarity. Part of the paradox, which has grown since the industrial revolution, arises between the functional and the spiritual, and establishes, through exceptional refinement and the use of endless variables, direct communication with the spectator and, at the same time, with spaces, imaginary in principle, but which appear to be determined by the characteristics of the work of art itself. These are spaces that spring forth, as in a kaleidoscope, from suggestions implicit in irrefutable express richness. The dialogue, stemming from reasoning and, therefore, leading to reflection, creates a desire, like all approaches to great sculpture, to arouse the senses to the point of generating a longing to interact with the pieces, and even caress them.
There is no doubt that to Claudia, a vigorous type of artist, the exploration of a singular volumetric and the judicious search for the possibilities offered by materials, which, due to their density, initially appear opaque, and may run contrary to the conventional concept of aesthetics, but which, however, have enabled a prudent and systematic investigation, have led her to create her own universe in which one of its chief qualities is the apparent discordance posed by the implied condition of the material. In the end, what becomes subjective, is that once the components, which come from patent utilitarianism, are transformed, thanks to her profound conviction and an intervention conceived with great care, they produce shudders of surprise in the observer and cause him to submerge himself in the always reassuring realm of fantasy due to the apparent contradiction between the material and the concept, and the possibility of taking part in a game that has both a playful intention and an undercurrent of irony.
While Constructivism in its inception was nourished by politics, and, therefore, has a certain ideological component, Claudia Hakim’s search, through a process which shares with said movement a passion for the assemblage of objects and its resulting discoveries, arises from essential conditions. These are conditions, which far beyond allowing her to lay the foundation for an alphabet, have shown her a path and along the way she has never stopped yielding to the effects of an investigation that has driven her to constant testing and eliminated any possible misstep with such a risky formula. Thanks to meticulous precision and continual experimentation with the possibilities of the industrial and, in particular, metal mechanics, she has managed to create a language of great conceptual richness in which the interaction of symbols and techniques and points of view determined by sensitivity have been intertwined to produce endless graphs and innuendos.
Although at times, especially in large-format pieces, one might find references to “minimal art” and to a structuralism of polished and shiny surfaces, it is no fluke that the creations of this artist, whose work, in its own right, pertains to the very significant Colombian panorama of structuralistic sculpture, have maintained close ties to the millenary expressiveness of fabrics, to the inexhaustible and to a certain degree baroque richness of textile grammar, and that her initial mutterings in the field of art revolved around frameworks and warps. That is why one cannot help but notice, in many of her pieces, a bidimensional component that always ends up being overwhelmed by a result and by a flexibility that contain undeniable elegance and, at the same time, extraordinary express freedom. Nevertheless, this kind of throwback or yearning for the loom is not just an artifice. To the contrary, said reference marks a journey, which, starting with what might be defined as visual provocation based on a series of strange-looking elements, ends up bearing witness to the infinite possibilities of a material when associated with art and, in particular, with a form whose nature, as determined by the author, can be argued as being abstract or figurative.
In addition to the language, which captivates because it is nourished firstly by sensitivity causing instantaneous involvement with the piece, by a thorough investigation and by subsequent experimentation; perhaps the most notable and disquieting characteristic of a work, which displays an unyielding coherence and the ability to erect an almost magical universe, is the search for the lighting effect in the face of the absolutism of metal pieces; or better yet, the paradoxical investigation of a brightness that, at times, appears elusive and unlikely, and, nevertheless, manages to overcome the disarray presented by the solidity of the assemblage and of each one of its elements. Many of Claudia’s works, which possess the dimension of true optical and sensory enigmas or, paraphrasing the German professor, Max Imdahl, of “optical and tactile programming,” are not too distant from the works of some of the great authors of Op Art that invite visual romping, and, immediately thereafter, precipitate a deluge of metaphorical interpretations.
I cannot help but ask myself if constant toying with the effect and then with the light, as the central axis of a work of art, might not obey some mystical or perhaps cosmic intention, consciously or unconsciously, and, therefore, a rational and at the same time scientific or technical evocation of the mythical. In any case, it is a journey that obligatorily arises from profound introspection, in whose outcome one can discern the hint of a categorical question about nature and the transcendental. The resulting examples, that at times have the flavor of answers, bear witness to the evident triumph of light over the rigidity of a material that merely becomes a vehicle for underscoring the conclusive superiority of illumination.
Improbable-looking reptile skin, bony structures of fabulous beings, massive chain mail reminiscent of medieval times, ridge-crested wheels, huge tears of steel and light, mobiles which invite us to penetrate them and get carried away by the vibrating rhythm of their oscillations. Organisms, which in recent experiments have started to overflow the space allotted to them in the beginning, or perhaps to hug it in a wild attempt to seek new dimensionalities, or perhaps abstractions, in the least limited sense of the word, form part of a large series of complex compositions, sometimes excessive, at others intimate, that populate the cosmos of this veritable illusionist. She is an illusionist of the image and the play of light on corpulence, who, in addition to having the ability to transmit a sensitivity strengthened by the spirit of knowledge gained through endless inquiries, has been marked by the ancestral tradition of weaving, because of her proximity to the industry, and a technical evolution which has placed her in manifest contemporaneity. But above all, she has been marked by a lucid perception of aesthetics, which, for those observing her work, is transformed into a kind of poetry displaying the depths that artistry can reach when exercised decisively and without restrictions other than those prescribed by a profound conviction.
Fernando Toledo, B.A in Communications CENP (Centro Español de Nuevas Profesiones), Madrid. Graduated in Philosophy and Literature, University of Madrid. Director of Cultural Activities University of Salamanca, Bogotá
