The Museo Moderno presents the first solo exhibition at a museum by Argentinian artist Mariano Altamirano (Buenos Aires, 1988), also known as Cartón Pintado [Painted Cardboard], a pseudonym which he chose in reference to one of the most crucial resources in his artistic practice, and one which gives sense to his pieces.
His use of cardboard as a support for his work symbolises the relationship he establishes with the city during his walks, but it also points to the reuse of a discarded material that is generally alien to pictorial tradition. While he changes the function of the cardboard he collects on his travels through the city – appropriating it to support the images of different characters that are identified through their expressions, poses and attire – Cartón Pintado also uses the medium to explore his own identity.
This series of recent portraits condenses the intimacy of his own experiences with those of imagined characters. The images invite us to reflect on human behaviour, as represented by supernatural transformations, animistic phenomena and gender variations. The stories emerge from different experiences of the artist: everyday experiences, imagined stories, or reflections that are told using the power of the materials and the colours that appear in thick layers of oil paint, as well as the use of other materials that add details, luster, and identity to his characters.
In his hands, the portrait is a model of transmutation that offers us the possibility to see and imagine ourselves as someone else. Cartón Pintado’s portraits go beyond what is seen as they condense ideas, attitudes and visions in an aesthetic that combines realism, expressionism and imagination. In his search for that wealth of expression, the artist recognizes himself in the characters he paints and, perhaps, leaves us with the question of whether the figures are also self-portraits that go beyond the poetic dialectic between life and art.
Curated by: Victoria Noorthoorn and Clarisa Appendino
Cartón Pintado (Buenos Aires, 1988) began his career working in his bedroom, painting on large pieces of cardboard he had found, mixing together different techniques and materials. After studying fashion design and furthering his studies at the Universidad Nacional de las Artes (UNA), the artist continued his artistic training in a self-taught manner. In 2019, he participated in group shows at the Centro Cultural Haroldo Conti and at the Alpha Centauri gallery. In February 2020, he held his first solo show at the Quimera gallery and had a residency at Munar/Boca de Fuego (Buenos Aires, Argentina). In 2021, he held his second solo show at NN gallery in La Plata, Argentina. Since 2020, he has been a member of the collective “Caterine Ful Love”, together with the artists Nina Kovensky and Lucía Reisig.
Cartón Pintado Portrait
Cartón Pintado’s portraits condense ideas, attitudes and visions with an aesthetic in which realism, expressionism and imagination converge. His use of cardboard as a support for his paintings connects to the relationship he has established with the city during his walks through it, but also points to the reuse of a discarded material that is usually foreign to the pictorial tradition. Just as the cardboard he collects on his travels through the city changes its function and is transfigured to support images of different characters who are identified through their expressions, poses and attire, it is also medium chosen by Cartón Pintado to explore his own identity. This series of recent portraits that have been brought together in the exhibition, Baile fantástico [Fantasy Ball], mixes the intimacy of his own experiences with those of imagined characters. The images invite us to reflect on human behaviour, represented through supernatural transformations, animistic phenomena and gender variations.
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