Connie Arismendi
Taking its name from the Spanish word for “passing, fleeting, transient,” and for “a passenger or traveler,” this exhibit dealt with the transitory nature of life. The artist stated, “We are all travelers …. time passes on, emotions change and memory fades away.”
One of her key installations, El Arbol de Mi Vida (The Tree of My Life), was composed of a nine and a half foot steel tree with large candles perched on its branches. The candles had delicate drawings of the artist’s family members at different stages of their lives encased in the wax. Recuerdos Oscuros (Obscure Remembrances) addressed the mutable and elusive quality of memory. It was made from dozens of cut vellum stars pinned to the wall and a mirror that reflected the image of the viewer. La Vida en el Espejo (Life in the Mirror) was a vanitas piece that represented reflection upon death and the imperceptible passing of time.
The show’s other installations were based on the theme of forgiveness, the inevitability of death, and emotional cleansing. Together, the installations created an atmosphere, unburdened by pronounced physicality, which were reminiscent of “whispers or breath.”
