Repeating Islands

Cheli Sanabria’s “Tribulación: [madero y espinas…] […arqueología de la memoria]” (Tribulation: [Wood and thorns] […archeology of memory]) will open on May 17, 2012, at 7:30pm at the Art Gallery of Sacred Heart University [Universidad del Sagrado Corazón] and will be on view until August 15, 2012. The gallery is located in the interior patio of the Barat Sur Building at the university, Bus Stop26, Ponce de León, Avenue in Santurce, Puerto Rico. The exhibition is free and open to the public.

Description: The exhibition comprises 15 three-dimensional works and a “sculptural video.” To create these, the artist used wood, charcoal, ink, rust, concrete, and wire as narrative threads of her artistic discourse. According to the artist, “The works were created recently and are the product of a process of introspection, divorce, and deserting.” He adds, “Eleven years ago, I began to develop an [artistic] proposal based on ancient wisdom. My current work is the result of a meditative process in which I allegorically use Joseph, Patriarch of the Church, to establish my conceptual discourse.”

Adlín Ríos Rigau, Gallery director says: “We know the abundance and, at times, the prevalence of religious themes through art history. Cheli Sanabria shares with us aspects of his spirituality and personal experiences in a nontraditional way, as his artistic voice is expressed through abstraction. Sanabria expresses his ideas and feelings when, through a careful technique, he utilizes traditional materials and techniques as well as others not usually associated with sculpture.” Ríos Rigau also states that “contemporary Puerto Rican sculpture is well represented by Cheli Sanabria’s exhibition.

Cheli Sanabria (1971, Lajas, Puerto Rico) holds an MFA in Visual Arts from the Inter American University of Puerto Rico-San Germán.

For more information, you may call (787) 728-1515 extension 2561 or write to galeriadearte@sagrado.edu