LUMINOSITY AND OBSCURITY IN THE PRACTICE OF MATÍAS ERCOLE, AT LA COMETA
By Álvaro de Benito
Antes de todo (Before All Things) is the solo exhibition by Matías Ercole (Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1986) presented at the Madrid venue of La Cometa. The show centers on the exploration of luminosity and obscurity as elements that, although seemingly opposed, become fundamental to the construction of the image. Drawing on the conceptual dimension of the physical principle, the artist materializes the tension between concealment and revelation through techniques such as sgraffito, scraping, and stripping.
Across the two periods that frame the artist’s practice, the unveiling of what is hidden—or the act of creating upon that dark material—emerges as the essential outcome of an artistic inquiry grounded in the refusal to regard light as an abstract phenomenon. From his early black paintings to his more recent works in which color expands the possibilities of luminosity, Ercole also employs the image as both result and perceptual trap.
From the stretcher that becomes a door—the most evident example—part of the work on view operates as a passage between two worlds, one that may be spatial, material, or conceptual, yet invariably encourages a reconsideration of how we look. Other proposals, in which the installation obliges the viewer to adopt a passive position within an immersive environment, shift this perceptual dimension in different ways.
The interplay proposed in Antes de todo begins with a theoretical engagement with matter and gradually moves towards more conceptual and, at times, figurative concerns, ultimately foregrounding the relevance of meaning. The tension exercised on a viewer suspended between passivity and agency generates a dialogue and an invitation to contemplate image, luminosity, and obscurity as surfaces through which to deepen the experience of perception.
Matías Ercole. Antes de todo can be seen until 24 January at La Cometa, San Lorenzo 11, Madrid (Spain).
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