Melanie Smith

Hi, artists!

The teacher told us that everybody who wanted, could come to the exposition called: "Melanie Smith: farsa i artifici" and I went there as I was intrigued to know what was the exposition about.

I have to admit that when they put me the video at the beginning I was a little bit confused, but after that, the two guides explained very well that the video recorded by Melanie Smith wanted to explain the confrontation between the Mexican identity (the nation), and the Globalisation represented through the Coca-Cola advertisement.

Then she followed that idea but expressing the cultural shock between her culture (English culture) and the Mexican one through a video in which she is trying to learn how to dance...

Furthermore, she also made a contradiction between the nature of the Amazon jungle and the technology. For example, from rubber we make the cars' wheels... In this way, she tries to explain the tension between nature and humanity.

And another aspect I would like to highlight is that one of the paintings we saw was very similar to "El Jardí de les Delícies" by Bosch. We also saw a giant ear that, of course, has taken its base in Bosch. Here you have some photos:

It was very interesting to go and see how Smith makes us think about which is the place of nationalisms now that we are in a globalised world, specially now that a lot of conflicts are because of this (here in Catalonia there are people who want to become independentist and the Spanish politicans are constantly using the word: "nationalists"...).

It can also make us reflect about human action in the environment.

It can make us think about the changes we are facing and about how ideas are constructed and deconstructed.

It was a really good expositions with very good guides. I just wish we had had more time as there was a lot to see.