Ivan Alejandro Báez
Bio
From a young age, Iván Alejandro Báez Cartagena showed passion and sensibility towards the arts. This encouraged him to take classes during his teenage years at La Liga de Arte, La Escuela de Artes Plásticas, and Taller de Artistas, leading to a bachelor’s degree from La Escuela de Artes Plásticas in Puerto Rico. Báez is full of curiosity which has led him to explore themes such as metaphysics, spirituality, and social relations in his art. His work is subject to, as well as a reflection of, the times he lives in, the accelerated nature of modern society, the post-internet era, the bombardment of propaganda images, and our search for identity as Puerto Ricans. The multicultural quality of the internet has erased the boundaries for his references and readings allowing him to absorb qualities and practices from different cultures as well as artistic movements from around the world. Báez was influenced by Rothko, Duchamp and Lucian Freud, with whom he shares similar aesthetic and conceptual concerns. His main style emphasizes color; however, he is not limited to paint. He believes that technology is an ally to art and dedicates his time to explore materials and new production methods.
Statement
My artistic practice explores the complexities of Caribbean life, covering the daily experiences of beauty, chaos, resistance, and displacement that characterize life in Puerto Rico. I work with a bright and saturated palette, evoking the vibrant Caribbean sun, and darker tones that reflect the social and political tensions that affect island communities. A large portion of my work discusses migration, family fractioning, and the difficulty of staying in a territory scarred by instability. These truths, although painful, are approached through a visual language that exalts resilience, memory, and the connection of those who decide to stay and reinvent themselves in the face of adversity. Through figurative compositions, nature metaphors and symbols from daily life, I search for a space of emotional reflection that connects the personal with the collective, the local with the universal. My work is an invitation to contemplation of dilemmas and hope of insular communities, and making visible the contextual layers beyond the paradise landscape of Puerto Rico.
2.5 x 4m / 98.4 x 157 in
