Teresita Fernández

Imposing and at the same time slightly elusive, Waterfall, 2000, is a sculptural work that, in its immobile and silent presence, condenses all the dynamic and thunderous energy of the natural phenomenon to which it refers. Created from long bands of acrylic plastic, Teresita Fernández’s sculpture alludes to the permanence of form through the idea of continuous change. The movement of water is evoked through the alternation of the colors blue, azure, and white. Similar to frames taken from a movie, their sequence corresponds to the breakdown of the various moments that, in nature, make up a cascading waterfall. As is typical of the artist’s work, it is the viewer’s gaze that holds the power to dynamically reconfigure the image of the waterfall and its dense liquid matter. Almost as if this were a sheet of paper, the work exists at the limit of two-dimensionality, but its curvature defines an interior space that can be visited. Intimate and protected, it suggests a place apart, rich in physical and sensual suggestions.
Often created as subtle perceptual enigmas, the works of Fernández are intended to provide experiences that are created to the rhythm of each visitor’s steps or possible pauses. In keeping with this important concept, which unites the eye of the observer with the body in motion, Fernández places individual subjectivity and physicality at the center of her art. Attempting to open up her works to a multiplicity of meanings, the artist finds most of her subjects in natural elements such as fire and water, and in atmospheric phenomena such as clouds or rainbows. On occasion, the organic forms of plants or flowers or details of the landscape constitute additional sources of inspiration. Uninterested in literal representation, but with presenting tactile conditions to produce stimuli of a psychological nature, the artist favors the use of artificial materials, such as plastic, fiberglass, aluminum, or steel, choosing to work these in such a way that she eliminates all possible traces of her individual gesture.

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