IDOLIZING at Voz Alta

IDOLIZING at Voz Alta - June 1, 2007 / Photo by Victor Santana

Saturday, we went to Voz Alta to check out Idolizing, an art exhibition from three UCSD visual-arts grad students, Susannah Bielak, Estevan Martinez and Omar Pimienta, which analyzes the practice of idolatry and ritual through photographs, drawings, sculpture and video.

Bielak presented “Sentiment of Flowers,” in which she created portraits of her friends exploring idiosyncratic approaches to the act of dedication. The result were some powerful images with equally interesting dedications. I personally like the one of the girl in the red dress who is using the flowers to create distance between herself and the camera.

Esteban Martinez presented some cartographies exploring the intersection of memory and place. I think he used satellite imagery from Google Earth for the base of his project. It’s always fun to try to figure out where you are based on landmarks.

Omar Pimienta presented a Statue of Liberty sitting on top a pre-columbian pyramid made from plaster. Through video, photography and sculpture, Pimienta gives homage to his native Colonia Libertad and the endangered trade of plaster figure-making for the American tourist industry. I wonder how long before you start seeing vendors at the border selling a pirated replicas of his Statute of Liberty to American tourists.

Ariba la Liber