Unveiling of a new series of works
12 October – 21 November 2021

Francisca Prieto is delighted to invite you to explore Reminiscence’s Viewing Room; the inaugural unveiling of a new series through an online exclusive exhibition, open until 21 November 2021 only.

The exhibition shows every work in detail, together with the story behind each artwork. It also features a short film that will take you through the thoughts and ideas behind the series, giving glimpses of process and a fantastic insight into the artist’s unique way of seeing the world.

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In Reminiscence, Francisca Prieto captures the very individual and remembered sense of place. Visualising the intangible architecture of the mind, she shows our ability to conjure both physical and emotional memory to form a space.

As a moment etches an impression on our mind, drawing in surrounding colour and light, these works present place from the eyes of the beholder. Treated metal and collected coloured tickets form the light and shadow of recollection – paper trails of many journeys long forgotten. These works reveal the artist’s own personal memories.

Some are specific to place – London or Cuba – others hint at a feeling, but as images pass through the mind, indistinguishable, fleeting, yet full of suggestion and sentiment, these frames reminisce an individual’s moment in time.

| I am looking to recreate the involuntary mental impression left by a place on my mind. The works are not representations, but structural interpretations of a space in time.

In this short film Francisca Prieto reflects on her series reminiscence, taking us through her artistic process and giving us an insight into the inspiration and ideas that lie behind this new body of work.

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Words short film Reminiscence:
While reading a book, after only a couple of words, sentences transform into images, my mind turns into visual mode very quickly, and I record it that way. The same happens with the world around me, it is recorded as a visual impression in my mind, one that sums up all the experiences related to it.

I am interested in how uniquely individual that process is. So, in this series: Reminiscence, I am looking to explore and capture that personal and unique impression left by a place in time. These works are interpretations – not representations. I am not looking to recreate the physicality of a place, but the emotional aspect of it.

I find the Japanese concept MA fascinating. It refers to the interpretation of an empty space or the in between. I apply it by focusing on the empty or negative spaces, which govern the structural parts of my constructions.

For this series, my starting point is a simple three-dimensional modular grid. Its rectangular proportions are inspired by the Japanese way of measuring room spaces – tatami. Layers of thoughts and experiences are translated into rectangular plates, their intervals marking a rhythm in time. Reflections and shadows bring this series to life.

Different places have triggered distinct emotions:

Façade is as much a comment as an interpretation of Cuba, and its crumbling state.

The monumental Hagia Sophia inspired Passage, with its intricate layers of historical, geographical and cultural meaning.

Viewpoint is a commentary on the increasing emphasis on subjective truth.

Absorbed attempts to portray the inscrutable depths of our minds.

My birth country Chile, has been the source of inspiration for 2 very different works:
Reflection in which I portray the quiet expanse of the agricultural land between mountain ranges … and Corroded which I made 4 years later, and looks very different, as its character is completely changed by the country’s social and political unrest.

Profound mixes light and architecture with soul-searching faith.

Amalgamation is inspired by historic Venice which becomes something else when it’s transformed by art, during the Biennale.

My work also reflects on the different relationships between time and place.

The city of London, and its ever-changing views is represented by Moment.

Transient recreates a chance encounter. On a walk, I came across the burning red Ivy near Whitehall in London, during the political turmoil of Brexit.

Exposed, on the other hand, refers to the long term…how life marks us, adding to our uniqueness.

I’m intrigued by the effect that time has on a memory of a place, if you leave it for too long – it fades away, if you approach it too soon - it won’t have internalized. I made these works over a four-year period, coming to life long after having experienced these places
… as I look back on them, they seem remarkably accurate to me, a genuine insight into the way I experience the world.