Catalina Estrada

November 15th, 2006

I would say that there’s a big difference between exhibiting something and showing it on some kind of publication. An exhibition on a gallery should be a big step, where one has the opportunity of showing one’s work in a way the artist really pleases. Of course one should never forget one simple thing: the exhibition is like a presentation card, so it should be well done. There are those who choose the fastest and simple way, there are those who complicate things, and there’s those who, like Catalina Estrada (www.catalinaestrada.com), knows how to do it well.

Preparing an exhibition is like playing a game. You have to be aware of a million things and you have to know how to play with what you’ve got. You need to find that equilibrium between what you would like to do and what you are going to do for real. And Catalina knows it well: “To start preparing any exhibition I need to know how many paintings I’m going to exhibit, the colors I want to use etc I want that each painting lives by itself and at the same time can find its place among the other paintings, and that the space functions as one”. The money is never enough, there’s always things that are left undone and the silly feeling that everything will be perfect for the next exhibition haunts you every time.

For the moment the talk is on “No me quieras matar, corazón”, at Iguapop Gallery. And for once I would say that the artist did what she wanted to and achieved victory. The presentation card worked out fine and Catalina Estrada introduced herself for the first time in Barcelona in the best possible way: her own way. And it’s easy to recognize her style for everything is hand made. The exhibition smells tradition, something that comes from unknown times, something that more than culture resembles pure remembering. Barcelona turns into Colombia, for a moment, and the sound of old folk songs are everywhere: “The Latin American folk music is what gives life to all the ones that are in love, to all the ones that are lovesick, to the ones that want to die for love and find comfort in these songs”. To do all that Catalina uses spray paint and stencils and lots of imagination. Pieces of wood, doors found on the street and paper panels are painted in a new fashion forgetting those old ways, and in all this the surprise is on the third dimension. Little pieces of colored reliefs can be found in almost every painting: “I like the idea of touching the paintings and feeling its texture…”

This is “No me quieras matar, corazón”, the perfect moment and opportunity to say and show things that were kept inside for too long, to deal with the ways of love personally, and to do it by using the fastest way to the heart, music. If it wasn’t personal it wouldn’t be Catalina. That’s the way to know Catalina Estrada, by going to one of her shows.

Text by: Ana Neto

Entry Filed under: Miscellaneous