SOLO EXHIBITION AT MUSEO de BELLAS ARTES

Francisca Prieto: Las tres dimensiones

29 May – 4 August 2019
Museo Nacional de Bellas Arts – Sala Chile
Santiago, Chile

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The London-based artist, Francisca Prieto, opens her first exhibition in Chile – the country of her birth – this month, at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Santiago.

Called Las Tres Dimensiones (‘The Three Dimensions’), it is a major retrospective of Prieto’s art from the past two decades. Her work forms part of important, private and public collections worldwide – such as the Victoria & Albert Museum in London – and 40 pieces will now go on show at Chile’s most prestigious art institution.

It will feature work from all the key series of Prieto’s career: from ‘Between Folds’ (in which she unbound the pages of old books and reworked them in stunning, 3D sculptures) to ‘Intrinsic Dimension’ (in which she used train tickets from years past to create beguiling, abstract sculptures that evoke myriad, personal journeys).

The exhibition is curated by Daniela Berger, who says ‘Francisca’s work revives and reconstructs objects, views and moments from the past – and celebrates their dignity and legacy in the present.

‘She carries out an investigation into the historic, symbolic and material use of things, employing mathematics and her power of synthesis to generate fresh, new readings’.

Las Tres Dimensiones will present the artist’s work in broadly chronological order, allowing an appreciation of her evolution over time. Other series to feature will be ‘Printed Matter’ (2002-2008); ‘Utopian Symbols’ (2013-2015); and ‘Traces of Absence’and ‘Reminiscence’ (both ongoing).

Born in Santiago in the 1970s, Prieto moved to London at the turn of the millennium and gained a Master’s degree at Central St Martin’s School of Art. She has lived and worked in the British capital ever since. Among her career highlights was exhibiting ‘Utopian Symbols’ at Palazzo Mora, during the 2017 Venice Biennale.

‘Over the years, the materials and techniques with which I’ve made my work have changed,’ Prieto says, ‘but what has remained constant is my use of three dimensions – hence the title of this retrospective. Three dimensions are an invitation to study and discover, thus to be part of the process and the work itself’.

Las Tres Dimensiones is supported by the Chilean financial institution, LarrianVial, and counts also on the participation of British art critic, Alastair Smart, who has followed Prieto’s career for many years and will be joining her and Berger for a pair of talks in the opening week of the exhibition*

‘We identify ourselves strongly with the work of national artists who’ve had international success,’ says Fernando Larraín Cruzat, the president of LarraínVial. ‘The art of Francisca Prieto is a contribution to the cultural patrimony of this country, and we hope the Chilean people will come in large numbers to know and enjoy it’.

‘Las Tres Dimensiones’ is being held at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, in Santiago, from 30 May to 4 August 2019; with the support of LarrainVial together with Ley de Donaciones Culturales and the British Council. Organised by Fundación de Gestión Cultural Lustro, in collaboration with the Corporación Patrimonio Cultural de Chile.

[The official opening ceremony was officiated by LarrainVial’s COO, Juan Luis Correa, and President, Fernando Larrain; Museum Director, Fernando Perez; and Minister for Cultural Heritage, Emilio de la Cerda].