|
|
Ricardo Morales Hernandez lives and works in Puerto Rico.
Ricardo Morales Hernandez, Cloud Painter (from Heavenly Mindscapes Series), 2005. Archival ink print mounted on sintra, up to 20 x 30 inches. Courtesy of the Artist.My work consists of representing an everlasting, perfect place. I make images in order to present the possibility of life after death. I want to confront the spectator with real views about the ending of the world as we know it, and the creation of the new one. Western society, with its hard rationalism and its scientific approach to nature and human relations, assumes a vulnerable position toward beliefs and faith systems. Rethinking old acceptable paradigms such as Darwinism, evolution, and a new world order is more than just a trend. It is necessary in order to establish the future direction of our civilization. We are intelligent beings looking for answers. I believe it is my task is to translate the Biblical prophecy of the kingdom of God into a contemporary language.
In order to execute this concept, I use various media. Drawing permits me to work quickly, and to express a rough, immediate sensibility foreign to other media. In my ongoing series Visions of the Kingdom, I depict evidence of a spiritual world with socio-political and biographical content. In the Floral Explosions series, I demonstrate the current of an explosion of flowers blossoming and flowing in all directions. I work with the same concept in the Spirit Flow series, an on-site installation project resulting in a series of photos dealing with the idea of the Holy Spirit.
Other series, such as Heavenly Mindscapes I and II, show in 3-D the possibility of a world crisis and spaces of glory and happiness. Here I use a technique that I call "micro-installation photography," in which I arrange objects in a controlled scaled scenario and photograph them with special lenses. In my latest photography series, From my Observatory, I explore imaginary landscapes that come from the details of old encyclopedias, history books, and magazines.
All of these disciplines contribute to nurturing my initial mission. My investigations have a tremendous importance in my art, especially in projects in which I collaborate with the general community. La Micro Gallery project is a DIY ten-by-ten inch art space that travels. Different people can use it and curate exhibitions in it using the "micro installation photography" technique. Here I explore the perfect place in micro space. Visions of You is a special project using photography and the choreographic movement of people who have volunteered themselves to show with their bodies their greatest visions of themselves in paradise. My process produces not only the idea of a perfect world, but also shares a reality that can become more widely accepted.
