chema
Q4 featured artist
chema is an interdisciplinary artist working with found material. part intuition, part research, their practice reflects an approach they call 'recreating geographies'. this practice manifests itself in installation, drawing, sculpture and photography. their use of the found and the discarded transforms material into a critique of the contemporary overconsumption and destruction of the natural environment 'recreating' refers to the inherently artificial process of making in their work, a tendency to draw from what's already there, and how their materials are human-made.
'geographies' because of the use of space: site-specific installation, critiquing the role of the artist in the studio, or drawing on real-life development and destruction. chema's just graduated from their masters course at glasgow school of art and is now based at strangefield, in glasgow's east end. their current body of work 'el mar de plástico' is a melding of their native spain with scotland's post-industrial recent history. recovering plastic and scrap metal to create drawings that make one pause n reflect about the climate emergency and our relationship to the material world.
Studio Practice
these images reflect the different aspects of the process and research behind the work. where the material begins its practical life from a mountain of rubble in southern spain and me collecting it n the physicality this implies; to the aerial geographies of the greenhouses in the area that make this collection possible. my journal that houses some of my thoughts and sketches throughout the 6 years i have held a proper studio practice. to the scrap in the yards and streets of glasgow. until we reach the studio where both scrap and plastic come together to form the surfaces that will eventually become the work.
Inspiration
in my work the primary influences come from my background both as a spaniard and a photographer. the documentation of my native southern spain, paired with the study and observation of contemporary artists' work funnel into a strange combination in which both the work and the ways to get there are immensely important to realise a practice. this comes with a deep admiration to both art and design in the real world as it is to the origin of materials, their destiny after usage and the ability to repurpose or recycle that which is found. the first image is of the subtleties i find every day that i create in my work. the second is a portrait of agnes martin, my inspiration. the third and fourth more details from spain, those that eventually translate into my work. and the fifth is the bedroom on the 5th floor of 101 Spring Avenue, New York City former residence of Donald Judd, a perfect use of visual art and design in my humble opinion.
Challenges
although i began my practice many years ago, there was many things that did not allow me to flourish as an artist or even understand what i was doing at the time. in the fifth image u can see on my early sculptures that i made back when i lived in edinburgh, trying to juggle an outrageously expensive city, with working precarious part-time jobs and sometimes attempting full-time studies without financial support. later when i moved to glasgow and inhabited my first ever studio at the pipe factory (fourth slide) this practice began to coalesce into what would become my work today though at that time i was only pretending to be an artist, since i barely made any work and i certainly had no idea how to express myself let alone put a convincing portfolio together. more recently (slides 1 n 2) i have been pushing myself to do things with the material i have at hand that i wouldn't normally do. push into crevices, draw and attempt to make something that initially might not work, but eventually shapes everything that follows the 3rd slide is somewhat representative of the aspects of care i pay attention to the most which is that which makes the most essential aspects of my life: my home and its environment. i keep good care of my living situation, decorating and keeping it tidy, as well as making sure those things that are most important (like one's clothing) brings a sense of joy in my life. as long as my house is tidy and there is food on the table, i can return to the work any time i like.
Reflection
as an artist what should be your first priority (and this is me relaying and taking up agnes martin's words) is the work. i think without a commitment to a sustained practice and making it is very difficult to become an artist let alone to make work that resonates honestly with people. it's ok to take breaks, to do what you need to do to come back to it, to focus your energy when necessary on friends and family. ultimately though this needs to be in service to when you return to the work and your practice. unfortunately there are many barriers to artists nowadays (financial, social, political, geographical) that are really hard to overcome. however as long as you keep pushing for your own work and for what you believe in, it is only natural that more and more will recognise themselves in your oeuvre. and as exhausting as the world feels sometimes this keeps me going. the slides are my current name cards, with only my first name debossed on them on gfsmith lavender paper and my current studio at strangefield where my practice will be based on for the foreseeable future.
