Fernanda Laguna
Welcome to my show in New York!!!!!! Bienvenidos a mi muestra en Nueva York!!!!!!
18 Mar – 7 May 2022
The Upstairs at 39 Walker

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Fernanda Laguna, Welcome to my show in New York!!!!!! Bienvenidos a mi muestra en Nueva York!!!!!!, Installation view, Bortolami, The Upstairs, New York, NY, 2022

Laguna’s practice includes decades-long activities as a curator, publisher, and organizer which have positioned her as a continued point of reference and inspiration in Buenos Aires. In 1999, the artist cofounded the legendary alternative space Belleza y Felicidad, which would later move to the outskirts of the city and host educational, artistic, activist, and poetry programs, expanding the community’s access to creativity and pleasure. Later, in 2017, she would open Comedor Gourmet (The Gourmet Soup-Kitchen) which redressed the soup kitchen model from food as necessity to a point of contact, identity, and happiness. Since the 2000s, under the pseudonym Dalia Rosetti, Laguna has published a series of novels, following feminist and queer storylines in styles reminiscent of adult and fan fiction.

Central to Laguna’s multifarious social projects in Buenos Aires is her singular artistic language, combining emotion, spontaneity, and innocence. Often incorporating found materials, from ribbons, glitter, shells, and studs, the artist’s paintings are dressed and decorated, reinforcing the work of art as stemming from the artist’s own sensibility. Laguna states, "I paint the paintings I want to have.” The works’ imagery negates any mistranslations of their conveyed meanings; a crying figure’s torrent of tears are emphasized by gold glitter so that their sadness is forefront. Laguna’s scale is invariably intimate, as she imagines the paintings’ movement and their transfer as tokens of affections.

Works

Installation view of displayed artwork titled ¿Por que? (Why?)

¿Por que? (Why?), 2019

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Caritas (Little Faces)

Caritas (Little Faces), 2016

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Escalera (Staircase)

Escalera (Staircase), 2019

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Ventanas (Windows)

Ventanas (Windows), 2020

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Flor llorando (Flower Crying)

Flor llorando (Flower Crying), 2021

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Cisnetico

Cisnetico, 2011

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Muy lindo (Very Nice)

Muy lindo (Very Nice), 2016

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Amarillo (Yellow)

Amarillo (Yellow), 2012

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Abstracción con cascabeles (Abstraction with bells)

Abstracción con cascabeles (Abstraction with bells), 2018

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Para nada (Not at All)

Para nada (Not at All), 2019

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Sin Título (Untitled)

Sin Título (Untitled), 2016

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Pummmm

Pummmm, 2021

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Otra frutera (Another Fruit Bowl)

Otra frutera (Another Fruit Bowl), 2021

Installation view of displayed artwork titled En mi cabeza (In My Head)

En mi cabeza (In My Head), 2018

Installation view of displayed artwork titled Las gaviotas (Seagulls)

Las gaviotas (Seagulls), 2010