The World Is Flat does not relate to the physical world. Such an affirmation alludes to the universe of non-things, to the intangible dimension of contemporary life. Precisely, these works are inspired by Thomas L. Friedman’s ideas in the homonymous book, according to which in today’s world -given the level reached by globalization- issues such as geographical, historical and cultural divisions, become more and more irrelevant every time.
The world is flat could be just another way of naming the contemporary experience. In a society ruled by the rush and the short-lived, in a context where all of our existence passes through the filters of technology and hyperconnectivity, contemplation and patience should be taught at school, because we have forgotten how to do it. And we don´t even care anymore. When everything is urgent, nothing is urgent.
In these paintings, geometric motifs in the foreground covering the entire painting, somehow “flatten” the image. Thus becoming a parallel story to the universe it refers to. The world is flat because it is hyperconnected, and today nothing is novel because whatever is new, instantly ceases to be. Obsolescence, more than programmed, is immediate. At this point in the 21st century, the field has become so leveled that we are all public figures, and privacy as well as the capacity to contemplate life, has become a luxury.
Every scene we see in the background has its own narrative, each of them tells a different story. Yet, they all share very similar foregrounds that not only synthetize the image in the back and “flatten” the whole picture, but also symbolize the connectivity and standardization of the contemporary world: in a way, Byung-Chul Han’s “hell of the same”.
In such a scenario, privacy is an illusion as the gaze of the other is ubiquitous. Even if we don’t expose our private life on social networks, the devices we use daily give us away, they know more about us than we do ourselves. And they also condition us, they impose a rhythm of life determined by acceleration and constant updating.
These paintings are, then, a footnote on contemporaneity. The rush of the ephemeral turned into beauty. They stand as an invitation to reflective pause, as a place for momentary rest in the face of the constant flow of stimuli and information in which we live.
Magela Garcés
FOCUS is presented regularly to highlight selected works from our production accompanied with observations by Magela Garcés.
