"The inside, esoteric illustration of the meaning of nature exists in a harmonic contradiction with the infinitesimal microscopic point of one universe which expands in the macroscopic chaos."
Nikos Zampardikos YOUR CITY magazine Volos, December, 2008, p.26
Fuck Dun, 2009, acrylic on canvas, 50 x 60 cm
In Peru, Ricardo Jarama has been highly aware of the social unrest that preceded the prophecy of the Maya. The year 2012 was said to become a turning point in history. According to the Maya calendar, a huge transformation would take place in the consciousness of humanity or in the natural state of the universe. Some people thought the world would be destroyed. Now, many years later, we know that the world hasn’t been destroyed, but we still can’t determine whether a paradigm shift has taken place. We are probably right in the middle of it, and nothing is more difficult than to observe your own era from a distance. However, it is clear that there is a lot of instability. Climate change, decline in biodiversity, the reaching of the limits of an economic system that is based on growth, and the weaknesses of democracy have come to light. No collective solutions are sought for the real problems, such as the large-scale migration of people across all continents, natural disasters, corruption and new diseases. The focus is on technological solutions and Artificial Intelligence, which increasingly remove us from the core of life on and with the earth. People, animals and nature seem to be invisible to political leaders. As a result of this dystopian time, unrest and fear predominate globally, there are demonstrations and wars, and at the same time there is a huge sense of resignation, especially among young people.
Ricardo Jarama is a highly sensitive person. He has a deep sense of unease and threat, and tries to depict his vision of the world, of Mother Earth, in the series Naturama. He does so in a graphic style, influenced by graphic novels. An example of a work from this series is Fuck Dun (2009). It shows a young man who is standing in a cloud-like environment, with his eyes closed and his arms folded. The upper part of his skull is missing. Instead, arrows, a speech bubble, and patterns emerge from it in red, like fireworks. The rectangular tabs that stick out of the boy are reminiscent of the flat cardboard dolls that children play with. For these dolls, there are pieces of clothing with similar tabs that can be folded around the doll. This boy is a not a flesh-and-blood person, but a flat doll that keeps his distance, which is emphasised even more by his closed eyes and posture. He is living in his head and disconnects himself from what is happening in the world. People don’t care about him anyway, he seems to be saying.
For the series Naturama, Jarama invented new figures, such as the dwarf. It is one of the artist’s favourite figures, because, to him, it adequately represents the incompetence of humans. Humans are small, both in terms of their body and their spirit, and therefore they do what is expected of them in an almost mechanical way. For example, the work Fuck (2010) shows flayed people who are hanging from ropes that are operated from above, outside the visual field of the painting. On the left, we see the barcode that emphasises the mechanisation of humans, and below that, a whale-like fish that seems to be shouting, its mouth wide open. It is warning us that this dehumanisation is not limited to humans, but will affect all living beings on earth. This figure is being controlled by something unknown, the barcode symbolises the system controlling them, and the creature below the barcode represents nature’s wake-up call. The works 02.00, Don’t Stop Now, Children Anf, bar code 50007967 and Free-Dun (2010) are also clear examples of this.
Fuck, 2010, acrylic on canvas on wood, 24 x 30 cm
02.00, 2010, acrylic on canvas on panel, 24 x 30 cm.
Don’t Stop Now!, 2010, acrylic on canvas on wood, 24 x 30 cm
Jarama observes not just resignation. He also sees positive examples of people who do resist and dedicate themselves to a better world, for example in the work The Silence in Movement (2009). We see a young person with a bandana tied around his/her mouth and nose, who is resisting the established order. In the background, we see ants and a match with wings. The painting reminds us that the solution – represented as a burning match – lies among animals such as ants who are able to live together in a well-organised way. For Jarama, it is important that we take animals as an example, as they live in harmony with the world in a seemingly self-evident way. He regularly combines animals and people in his paintings and drawings, in which animals represent messengers or provide an example.
The Silence in Movement, 2009, acrylic on canvas, 50 x 60 cm
Jarama is deeply affected by what is currently happening in the world. Nevertheless, he is also optimistic and believes in the possibility that humans are still able to change. In a number of paintings, for instance in XPand (2009), we see winged babies depicted in energy bubbles, who have the potential to turn the tide because they have a conscience and will not place themselves above nature. The artist is convinced that the earth will correct everything and survive.
XPand, 2009, acrylic on canvas, 70 x 100 cm
Click to see the collection.
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