Lessons in Transformation
From the mountainous coast of Santiago, Chile, Felipe Balzo latches onto subtle changes in abstract landscapes, figures, and architecture embedded in a different kind of natural space. Balzo’s canvases are ever-evolving works of reflection which grapple with states of transformation. At the core of the artist’s practice is the idea that throughout continuous change, many unexpected things always remain permanent and consistent. We may look for these things in Balzo’s vibrant paintings just as we seek them in our lives, but the search for consistency in transformation is as endless as evolution itself.
Part One: Who Is Felipe Balzo?
Question #1: Who are you?
Felipe Balzo, artist, painter from Santiago de Chile. Son, brother, friend. I live in the mountains of the coast.
Question #2: Who are you as an artist?
Once I heard Miles Davis said, “art is transformation.” I quite identify with this, my approach is a lot of changing, evolving because the mind and personality is like this. My work is like this, always changing but a small part always remains.
Question #3: What do you think about while creating?
I wanna point that, before and after I think, and reflect a lot, about everything in life in general. But while I’m painting, it’s like some sort of trance or meditation, pure focus, dancing, something like that.
Question #4: What is your escape?
A lot of things, art is one, taking a walk, playing some videogames, cooking and knowing practical stuff. Family and friends, but mostly, focusing in my artistic development, and sharing it with people.
Question #5: Why do you need art your life?
I can’t not to do art, I get sad, frustrated, angry, anxious, dumb, political, if I’m not painting.
Question #6: Is your artwork for yourself or for others?
Both.
Part Two:
Please describe your work and practice as best you can
I would define my art as transformation, I can paint a series of something determined- landscapes, buildings, abstract, constructive diagrams, disfigured people change, and keep changing, but something remains like the way, the shape, the line, the palette, but at the same time it is also transforming, evolving while being part of a whole. This is why showing 5 or 6 works does not really represent anything of the amount of what I have painted and traveled.
A series from 2021, where the overlapping of the organic volumes on the plane caught my attention, making as numberings, in a kind of harmony
autochthonous tree
In this series, let me be guided by what the environment made me feel, when looking at it more than in the real precision of the objects.
After the series of the landscapes, from above, I appreciate that the important thing was the game with the overlays and took them to something more abstract, matching, with these kinds of puzzles that are generated with the overlapping volumes.
| Where/ How can Vacant Museum viewers see more of your work and where can they purchase it? |
| https://felipebalzo.weebly.com/ https://www.instagram.com/felipebalzo https://www.facebook.com/felipe.balzo to buy some work, just sending a message to any of those platforms. |