The Language of Things
Roberto Romero-Molina
San Diego Art Institute
Through March 17th
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| Roberto-Romero Molina System #49 8 channel video installation without sound 2017 |
Article by Cathy Breslaw
When you arrive in the gallery spaces of the San Diego Art
Institute you may ask yourself the question “Where’s the art?” There is little
hanging from the walls because the artist wants you to listen, hear and
interact with ‘sound’. Originally a
painter, artist Roberto Romero-Molina is a visual and sound artist working on
both sides of the US-Mexico border and this exhibition is presented in partnership with the Tijuana Cultural Center(CECUT). His
exhibition The Language of Things includes
6 installations strategically placed throughout the expansive space of the
gallery. All but two of the installations include sound and visitors can hear
them all simultaneously from various points within the space. At first, this
can be a little disorienting but given time to acclimate to these unusual
surroundings, there is a feeling that it all co-exists nicely together. For
Romero-Molina’s art pieces to work their magic, we are required to slow down,
be present in the moment and occasionally close our eyes to receive the full value of
these art pieces. Open Field (2017)
is an interactive piece which includes a black and white video screen(oscilloscope)
and parabolic antenna that when moving, jumping, stomping, singing, clapping or
making utterances into the microphones, the visual display oscillates in kind.
Picking up the sounds of our movements, we are provided a visual description of
the sounds we are creating. Quartet is
a set of four screens, each with a formal geometric shape in either red, blue,
yellow or green, activated by thin white lines and tiny specs that are in
motion, each vibrating within the rectangular screens. Reminiscent of minimal hard
edge painting, each of these colorful works provide us with distinctive sound
patterns in motion, along with the shapes. System
#32 is a black steel tree-like structure with several branches, each
holding its own speaker from which we hear bird sounds produced with an
electronic synthesizer. Each audio
player has a variety of sounds and cycles
through periods of both vocalizations and silence. As you walk in and around
each branch, visitors hear varying bird sounds. Serendibite is an
installation that exists within a temporary structure of “walls” made from
commercial insulation and black metal frames, all guiding the visitor into a
more private space of sound. There are
three benches for sitting and contemplation, and for listening and ‘feeling’
while we let the sound wash over us. System
49 is a series of eight individual black and white video screens on stands,
set in a circular pattern at eye level. All the screens have the same location
- a room with several small bright windows, but with a different ‘scene’ in
each. Two human figures(one male and one female) wrapped in clear plastic appear
in some, while in others,there is a figure covered in plastic on the floor,
still or breathing. There is no sound for this installation as the imagery
draws us into questioning the content of each screen. The last installation is Video Painting, a video screen where we spend two minutes watching an
image emerge from shapes and shadows as the movements go in and out of haziness
and sharpness and variations in color.
Romero-Molina wants us to meet him halfway, inviting us into his world
of sound and communications, calling our attention to a mostly visceral
experience of what art can be.
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| Roberto Romero-Molina Quartet 4 Channel Video Installation 2012-2017 |
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| Roberto Romero-Molina System #32 8 Channel Sound Installation 2017 |
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