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BRONX TIMES REPORTER, APR. 8-14, 2022 BXR
Boricua College presents,
“Essentialisms &
Self-Discovery,” a solo exhibition
by Nicaraguan
born artist Franck de las
Mercedes.
Curated by Alexis Mendoza,
the exhibit presents
works tackling the vertiginous
thinking and
speed of contemporary existence.
A public opening
reception took place on
Thursday, April 7, from 6
p.m.-9 p.m. at The Boricua
College Art Gallery, 890
Washington Ave., in the
Bronx, and the show will
remain on view through
April 30.
De las Mercedes is an
internationally acclaimed
contemporary artist living
in New York City. De
las Mercedes’ multifaceted
body of work is noted
for his intense use of color,
jagged line-work and hieroglyph
like text layered
in abstract patterns. Referencing
memory, current
events, family dynamics
and sociopolitical topics,
de las Mercedes’ body of
work is a journey into an
emotionally charged, multicultural
landscape.
For this solo exhibition
de las Mercedes explores
the concept of portraiture
and how we understand
the facets of identity. The
works in the “Essentialisms
& Self-Discovery”
exhibit are both a personal
and historic documentation
of events that
as a group declare “I exist,”
and events that fail to
take place or have not happened
yet. Through pieces
like “Procesión – 2021,” de
las Mercedes captures the
tension, anxiety and emotions
in that split moment
before something happens.
Documentation has become
an essential element
in the artist’s art form,
and even becoming an art
unto itself. Whether abstract,
subtle or intimately
detailed, this archival selfrepresentation
is inherently
autobiographical in “Essentialisms
& Self-Discovery”
yet allows the viewer to put
themselves in the image escaping
into a world where
De las Mercedes has full
control.
Franck de Las Mercedes
is represented by the CAMP
Gallery and is currently
exhibiting at the Marietta
Cobb Museum of Art.
-Bronx Times
Photo courtesy Franck de las Mercedes
Boricua College
presents exhibit by
Nicaraguan born artist
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