Ricardo Cárdenas
Project: Manglar
Gallery: La Cometa

Manglar/Humedal  is based on research on the dynamic relationship between man and nature, science and art, the exploration of the line and materials. The flows of movement, the compositions and similarities between the engineering structures and the forms of these plant structures have been constant formal concerns for the artist.

The origins of this project are knowledge of materials and construction processes, and the search for a deeper level of understanding of the laws that govern specific natural environments. There is a meticulous observation, a constant drawing that extends into space and a careful selection of materials to make it a reality.

Although Manglar/Humedal makes an explicit reference to nature, it does not intend to imitate her. Its pieces are built using elongated metal planes, in which hundreds of welded elements are arranged diagonally with respect to one another. Thus, there is a dynamic, undulating presence that brings these metallic surfaces to life, revealing complex, urban abstractions executed using industrial and mundane materials.

During the 18th century, naturalism captured nature through ultra-realistic documentation and taxonomy. Shortly after, we saw the mass exodus from 'hyperrepresentation' of nature to impressionism, and, finally, to modernism. In that sense, this project abstracts the natural form creating a new reality, a dialogue about the natural order and that created by man and his fascination with destruction. The piece is designed to generate curiosity at first, but by inserting the viewer, there is a reflection on nature and its place in contemporary society.

What is the space that each one us inhabits? In this competition for space, is it possible to find lasting harmony? In contrast to the tactile world of nature that includes memory, knowledge, and feeling, the virtual world is riddled with futuristic illusions that ignore the qualitative dimension in human life in favor of artificial intelligence. The linear forms of the project also have a qualitative dimension, in them there is a sense of stability and durability that the artist considers vital signs. In other words, Cárdenas is constantly looking for a resolution, but without closing off the possibilities of what his sculpture can become and the different ways in which a work can be seen, intervened by bodies and emotionally absorbed.