| On view in February at the Blue Star Contemporary Art Center were five terra cotta pieces, which materialize a personal exploration of identity, displacement, and acculturation. The sculptor, Ovidio C. Giberga is a first generation Cuban-American who spent the earlier part of his life living abroad in Spain, Venezuela, Colombia and Italy. In his work Giberga explores identity through figurative sculpture depicting the nude male body. The works are inspired by “historical parallels, cultural symbolism, and personal content.” There is also a strong influence of pre-Columbian ceramics, in particular the stirrup-spout vessels of the Moche culture of Peru. | 
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Melisa J. Ramos
On view in February at the Blue Star Contemporary Art Center were five
terra cotta pieces, which materialize a personal exploration of
identity, displacement, and acculturation. The sculptor, Ovidio C.
Giberga is a first generation Cuban-American who spent the earlier part
of his life living abroad in Spain, Venezuela, Colombia and Italy.In his work Giberga explores identity through figurative sculpture
depicting the nude male body. The works are inspired by “historical
parallels, cultural symbolism, and personal content.” There is also a
strong influence of pre-Columbian ceramics, in particular the
stirrup-spout vessels of the Moche culture of Peru. The artist uses
stirrup spouts in many of his figures to suggest their potential use as
vessels, “inviting the viewer to think abstractly as to their contents
and purpose.” Additionally, these contemporary pieces are further
linked to pre-Columbian artifacts by the use of the word vessel in
their title.Four of the five pieces feature a realistic representation of the
male body; one piece is in the shape of a foot and features a painted
hand, it is aptly titled, Foot Vessel with Hand and Tweezers Pulling Thread. The work entitled Reclining Male as Flower Brick
is the only piece without a stirrup-spout and not designated a
“vessel.” This figure is lying on its back in a tense pose; the hands
are at its sides and the head is slightly raised as if emerging from
the ground. On top of the otherwise realistic male figure are
cylindrical projections rimmed in gold.Two other rigid male figures each feature the color yellow in noticeably opposite ways. In Standing Male Vessel with Yellow Caution Symbols
not only does the title signal “caution,” but so do the colors and
facial expression. As the title indicates, the male figure is standing,
he is frozen in a heightened state of vigilance. His expression is
stern, nostrils flared and eyes fixed ahead of him. Both arms are
raised as if clutching a steering wheel and yellow caution lines are
painted vertically from head to toe ending in a base lined with a neat
row of bird silhouettes.In contrast to the stark yellow lines of this figure is the Balanced Male Vessel with Roses.
Like the previous figure this one too is suspended in a stiff pose, his
legs are elevated and arms are straight, eyes alert. The contrast comes
in that this figure is decorated profusely with delicate, mostly yellow
roses, softening its overall rigidity. The figure Standing Male Vessel with Wasp Nests
is a noticeably different version of the male body. Instead of being
tense and alert, this figure, covered in images of grey wasp nests,
appears despondent as he looks down into his empty hands.In Giberga’s hands the vessel, typically for ritual use, now serves
as a means to portray emotion and personal experience. His work links
past and present as well as peoples and places in his visually eloquent
depictions of discovery and recovery of identity.
