Fifteen years ago, the El Pintor exhibition focused on the series Les Voisins, nos amis,14 vivid portraits of local residents of Grand-Hornu created by Angel Vergara to mark the fifth anniversary of MACS. This time, the oeuvre of this extraordinary artist – which cannot be categorised into a single box – is put into a broader perspective: an exhibition of his paintings. The museum trail begins with “paintings” made by a group of visually impaired children during a workshop devised by the painter. The trajectory in the exhibition reconstructs the evolution of his art practice: from the first ‘painted films’ he made in the 1980s in super 8 format, it goes through a typical classical gallery with large canvases to video equipment recording the painting process.
Whether with a performance, an installation or a video recording, Angel Vergara has always given ‘the act of painting’ a central place in his paintings and emphasised his presence in the social space, by painting himself while disguised under a canvas, by way of a mobile studio. In this way, the artist – aka Straatman – has been ‘taking to the streets’ for more than 30 years with painting, which he drenches in the incessant flow of life. This allows him to recreate – like a jazz musician – the syncopated rhythms and – like a filmmaker – the movements of life. Early in his practice, he created an opening for fantasy, making him indebted to Fluxus and akin to the poetic and political art of Marcel Broodthaers. With his ‘painted films’, created through the combined use of a camera, a glass plate and a colour accent, he attempts to reconcile art and life by synchronising painting and world in a ceaseless game of coverage and transparency. Remaining above all an “industrious painter”, Angel Vergara tirelessly pursues the dream of a painting that is constantly evolving, continuing to delay its completion while promising us that the painting could be finished at any moment.
The exhibition runs until 8 October 2023. On 5 October, HERMESensemble will participate in a visit with performances.