Mi Esencialismo – José Bedia

MEDIA RELEASE

JOSÉ BEDIA
Mi Esencialismo
Exhibition at Pori Art Museum 29.3.-5.5.1996

José Bedia (b.1959) is a Cuban artist whose exhibition “MI Esencialismo” / “My Essentialism” presents his latest work. His work has been shown once before in Pori – in the 1990 exhibition of young Cuban art “No Man is an Island” at the Pori Art Museum, which featured works by 14 artists. Bedia has since moved away from Cuba and now lives in Miami, Florida, where there is a large community of Cuban immigrants. José Bedia has become known for his habit of painting directly on the wall, but he has now moved on to canvas and paper-based paintings. He has also received international attention for his on-site installations, including a work at the 1995 Venice Biennale that depicted the perilous journey of boat people from Cuba to the Florida coast in August 1994.

The originality of Cuban art depends to a large extent on the cultural specificity of that island nation. The rich coexistence of ethnic cultures and religions has given rise to many Cuban artists, of whom the late Elso Padilla and Ana Mendieta are good examples. Bedia, like the cultural anthropologist, is familiar with ancient American cultures, but in his view, all the world’s cultures are equally valuable. The study of culture and the search for its characteristics can therefore be seen as part of the effort to define identity. Bedia’s art is also linked to the raising of the self-esteem of peripheral cultures in the aftermath of the modernist artistic empire.

José Bedia’s paintings are ritualistic; their subjects and the way they are made are linked to the Cuban religion of Palo Monte and to Native American rituals. Bedia is an initiate of Palo Monte, a parallel phenomenon of the syncretic Santeria religion, which is widespread in Cuba. The works can be seen as part of the practice of the religion. Bedia has incorporated into his works objects that refer to the power of deities. Alongside objects in the new paintings are photographs. Small fragments of photographs have given the painted figure a point of departure. Through painting, Bedia has restored the religious element invisible in photographs and questioned the ‘objective’ truth of the photograph.

Translated with DeepL.com 

Publication:

ISBN 951-9355-51-0
José Bedia: Mi Esencialismo
Pori Art Museum 29.3.-5.5.1996
Appendix to the exhibition catalogue
Translation by Matti Velhonoja
Pori 1996
Pori Art Museum Publications 33