ArtMedia Gallery — Miami

Curated by Jose A. Navarrete 
By Irina Leyva-Perez 

"Apply it to this side," the most recent solo exhibition by Angela Valella, is a project created specifically for the Artmedia Gallery space in which it was presented. Curate," by Jose Antonio Navarrete, the show is a thought-provoking mix of video installation, collages and ink-jet prints on crystal-clear film. It could be methodologically divided into three sections, one dedicated to the main installation, and the other two to the respective series of col-lages: Guided Tour and Afterimage.

The center of the gallery is dominated by On Being Slightly Suspicious, an installation that combines images, motion and sounds, including silence as an active element. Over a table, the artist placed two projectors that project simultaneously through films and plexi-glass. The juxtaposition of light, and the projection through a color film, visually produces a kaleidoscopic image. Valella adds the sounds of a variety of printing machines, which sound off in cacophonic cadence. The dynamic blend of light, image, motion and sound produces a different piece almost every time, as the timing and interaction of these visual and sound elements varies, producing a kind of unique sensorial experience to each viewer.

The series Guided Tour consists of minimalist pieces in which white appears to dominate spaces by creating what gives the impression of voids. This resource is an unmistakable reference to con-structivism, especially Malevich and his iconic use of white. However, upon closer inspection, we discover that these works are actually "collages" made from original art books whose pages she used to display as her selection. Her appropriations take on a new approach: While others make collages out of formal elements or fragments of images, Valella decided to 'cover' the original work with a piece of white paper and open a 'window' on those portions she wanted to highlight. This series, which she opportunely titles Guided Tour, becomes a game of references and discoveries in which we are chal-lenged to recognize well-known masterpieces by seeing just frag-ments of it. She is commenting on the fetishist aura that surrounds specific artworks and the concept of it as a cultural product.

The second series of collages, Afterimages, are pieces created with similar abstract components, in this instance combining crystal-clear film color pieces. The apparent simplicity of the composition is balanced by the use of plain colors, as well as black and white as anchors.

Undoubtedly, Valella is interested in establishing a dialogue with viewers, counting on their input, as their final opinion will be determined by their perceptions. She ingeniously tests their ability to recognize images and sounds in a playful interaction, although that is not the primary intention of this exhibition. Ultimately, Valella seeks to blur the boundaries of what art materials are and, by extension, what art is. Her sense of experimentation drives her to explore the many possibilities that an image can yield by adding different sensorial elements.  
( June 20 — September 1, 2013)