ElTiempo.com – Lydia Azout: Self-Portrait of a Master of Iron
Lydia Azout possesses an enviable vitality.
She is 80 years old, but you wouldn’t know it from her face or her spirit. “I got a late start,” she says, “I didn’t have my own studio until I was 32.” She didn’t study art in college because “I devoted myself to my children first,” she explains; when she saw that her three children were doing wonderfully well in school and preschool, she began taking classes with David Manzur, and later, in the 1980s, with the Uruguayan conceptual artist Luis Camnitzer in Italy. It was a perfect combination—the best of two comprehensive ways of viewing art: the blend of beauty and intelligence. She, for her part, did not follow in the footsteps of either of them and found in sculpture and iron her own way of connecting with the world.
“I like hands-on art—seeing what I’m creating. And that’s what working with iron, welding, and molds gives me; I do, however, have two unbreakable rules: that each work can be taken apart, and that each piece can be lifted by no more than four people. The second rule is that there must never be even the slightest danger.”
His sculptures are part of various collections, and one of his public works is a striking landmark in downtown Bogotá: a series of powerful iron rings on the stairs at the entrance to the Mambo. His exhibition at the Alonso Garcés Tierra Vieja / Tierra Nueva Gallery has that forceful quality of great sculpture: the pieces are so powerful that they overwhelm everything—even sound. It’s impossible not to fall silent in the main gallery. “The work,” he explains, “is a reflection on the destruction and rebirth of the Earth; we have ravaged nature, but I feel there is a new global consciousness, a rebirth—that’s why there are two circles, one dark and the other full of light.”.
The second part of the exhibition continues in the same spirit of vitality and boundless optimism. The main theme is water and the sea; there is a large installation featuring photos of different seas that come together in a magnificent light box. “Soy buzo”, dice Lydia. “And the ocean has been here since the earth began. I love being underwater, surrounded by different forms of life.”. Este es su Autorretrato.
Have you ever cried while looking at a work of art?
Yes, in front of a giant painting by Mark Rothko.
Which artist would you like to exhibit alongside in the same gallery?
With Duchamp.
What was the first work of art you ever saw?
Nature.
Have you ever had an accident involving a tool or fire?
Just part of the job: minor burns; I never do anything dangerous.
Do you have set working hours?
My mind is always working.
(Also: “Chircales” and other scenes from Bogotá in a new exhibition.)
Which artist—living or dead—would you commission to paint your portrait?
None. I'm not interested in a portrait of myself.
Who is the artist you admire most in Colombia?
Doris Salcedo, Feliza Burzstyn, Eduardo Ramírez Villamizar…
What is your favorite art book?
My diary.
How did the pieces in this exhibition come to be?
Seeing how humans abuse nature, I imagined the transformation of a planet weary from the blows.
What does water symbolize in this exhibition?
It's my passion; water has a memory. It is life.
What is your masterpiece so far?
The Worlds, by Garcés.
¿Cuál es la colección a la que pertenece que más la hace sentirse orgullosa?
The Thresholds of Mambo.
Why?
I love watching how people interact; I like to share that. Every detail was carefully studied. The challenge of the installation was, precisely, to set it up so that people could move in and out of it and so that it could withstand all that interaction.
Do you remember who bought your first piece?
My mom.
How did your relationship with sculpture and iron begin?
It was a natural progression toward three-dimensionality.
What has been your worst creative slump?
I don't put pressure on myself.
Why did you decide to become an artist?
It was a necessity.
Do you still have the drawings you made as a child?
No.
(You Might Be Interested In: Fifty Years Later, Picasso's Brush Still Holds Its Allure
—AFP and EFE).
How many years have you been in your career?
48
What criticism has bothered you the most?
I am my own harshest critic.
And what has made her the happiest?
When I see the audience interacting, especially young people and children.
Is there any artwork you haven't wanted to sell?
Almost all of them; they're like my own children.
How many pieces do you think he has produced?
So many!
Do you think you're a genius?
Not at all!
How organized is your workshop?
More or less…
Do you collect works by other artists?
Yes, many.
Which work of world art would you like to have in your living room?
Some works by William Kentridge and Amsel Kiefer.
(Read more: Latin America's Largest Art Fair Commits to Diversity).
Which artist has inspired you the most, and which one have you studied the most?
Several, including, among others, the Japanese artist Isamo Noguchi and the American artist of Ukrainian descent Louise Nevelson.
Is digital art the future? Do you already have NFTs?
In the long run, no. It has no consciousness; it's a hybrid.
Why is it worth buying one of his works?
It's only worth buying a work of art if it speaks to you.
View original source: ElTiempo.com