Porkchop. La Catedral

Erarta Museum presents an exhibition by the American multidisciplinary artist Porkchop inviting the viewer into the post-apocalyptic world of an imagined quasi-religion.

Although he is an inter-disciplinary artist, for this exceptional series of works the artist known as Porkchop in collaboration with Erarta museum will focus on large-scale sculptures. Artistically expanding on several mediums alongside sculpture, such as paint, illustration and text, Porkchop manages to evade an attribution to a particular artistic movement or grouping, allowing him to bridge the various forms of art in a highly sophisticated manner. In particular, his familiarity with murals and large-scale graffiti art is echoed throughout this show, not only due to the momentous size of the exhibition, but also the discernible juxtaposition of the primary colors that he utilizes within his oeuvre – gold, black and white.

From a technical perspective, the sculptures featured in the show are painstakingly planned and cast, typically made of resin, fiberglass, gold leaf and acrylic paint. The artist himself creates the moulded structures from which figures can emerge. Consequently, he laboriously adds layers of acrylic paint and real gold leaf to the works, followed by flawless coats of glossy resin, so that the imagined concept can be manifested. The application of paint onto his intentional ritualistic designs is deliberate, as by stripping these pieces of his normal vibrant palette and using only black, white and gold, a stark bold narrative referencing Central American traditions emerges.

It is the artist’s distinct methodology coupled with this unexpected perspective that can be observed when walking through the exhibition. Principally, it is Porkchop’s exploration of the ancient Aztec civilization and rituals in addition to contemporary Mexican customs that led him to create the works assembled as if in a grand Basilica.

However, in his works we can also see elements of parody, best illustrated by the exhibition’s centerpiece, Yram (2017), with its unconventional image of the Virgin Mary. Her face reminds us of the traditional Mexican Día de los Muertos masks, while her heart pierced by a stiletto obviously refers to Aztec religious practices.