featured artist interview (Nov 8-14)

Hello! I am Francisco Zarate, born in Buenaventura, Colombia. I currently reside in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. I am a designer in visual communication graduated from the National University of La Plata, in the city of La Plata. I consider myself a hybrid between a graphic designer and a visual artist. I am clear that the strategy of any communication project is to allow a flow of information between two parts, where design is the visual bridge that gives body and form to an idea.

10 questions

How did you learn about The Babel Masks and what motivated you to apply to be part of the show?

I think I found out either through the ARTJOBS or ARTCONNECT_OFFICIAL platform, I don't remember which one, but what I do remember is the interesting thing about the call, because of its title THE BABEL MASKS, I automatically imagined a post-pandemic world where we kept on with our mouthpieces.

What surprised you most about your work when you increased your use of found and available materials?

 What surprised me most is the ability to reinterpret material that could be said to be in disuse or discarded, to be able to see a potential in it. and in relation to what I have available I always try to mix it with what I find, such as scanning or photographing it to be able to have it in image and work with it.

 Do you think the number of artists choosing available materials over ordinary art supplies is going to increase, and if so, why? Will it be out of a sense of saving the planet or a decision made out of necessity? Or for other reasons?

It's a personal decision, but I have an opinion that some materials and processes for the creation of art can be polluting, I don't have much information about that so I don't want to go into it, but I recently watched a documentary by David Attenborough, A LIFE ON OUR PLANET, and I reaffirm my opinion about taking care of the environment at this very moment.

I'm glad I've been able to see projects by friends in relation to fashion, where they take used clothes and turn them into another garment with a different intention and use. I've also seen watercolors and other elements that are kinder to the environment.

I don't want to raise a flag over the kind materials for the artistic concretion and creation thinking about the environment, since each one has its process and way of interacting in art, I believe that a conjunction can exist where a balance exists.

Which audience do you most love to engage in your work? How do you connect with them and what do you discuss with them?

In this time of pandemic I have been much more active with respect to my artistic work. Through the network I have had a good reception, so I think that the virtual is the new color, or let's say the white wall where to expose oneself. There is no discussion in itself, rather it is an interest in the image and its content that in some is political from my perspective, where I think everything is, and I do not speak in the practical sense of politics, but rather of the ideas and from where one expresses oneself.

On your website there is a drawing of a large figure with several other totems or objects around it. What is the story of that image?

# BLM - the spirit of the ladder. is an image that is born in this context of the struggle of minorities for their right to express themselves and have their lives respected. I will put the declaration of that image:

This work is born in support of the black lives matter movement.
Much of my work relates to images of cultures with which I identify.
This work is an interpretation of the empowerment of black and indigenous peoples.

It reflects the idea of the struggle of these peoples who have been arbitrarily called minorities, a concept that from my perspective dwarfs a great culture and a legacy that has continued into human history.
WE ARE THE MAJORITY
In short, imagine the struggle as a staircase that is built step by step until you acquire your own combative spirit through time and space.
https://www.walltowallwpg.com/portfolio/frank-xarate/

This image is now placed on a street in downtown Winnipeg in Canada, was selected in a project called WALL TO WALL. of which I am part and I am very happy to share it and be part of the body of a city thousands of miles from where I am, speaking for itself.

If someone came to Buenos Aires looking for the place to see the best art and meet a circle of artists, where would you suggest to go? Are there certain artists in Buenos Aires really motivating you these days?

Buenos Aires is a city where many things related to art are constantly happening, not only in the museums already established, but also in cultural centers, outdoor spaces and even parties where works are projected. The only thing is that sometimes they are all in the same period of time and you can miss some of them. What I recommend is to navigate the city.

A movement of artists who ask for more participation of artists of color in museums and other cultural areas of the country can raise the existence of artists of indigenous and black descent.

Can you say more about the Selk  Nam and how you became connected with their ideas and their rituals?

I met this tribe through postcard images, where these images crossed me, and there began my interest in them and their history. And somehow I include them from my perspective, respecting their culture and art.

Who or what was the most important influence in how you have developed as an artist?

My primary influence regarding art, before I knew what art was, I think it had to do with the natural environment where I was born and grew up in my childhood, in Buenaventura-Colombia. I think there is something related to the roots of the mangroves in the Pacific Ocean, as well as the Afro-indigenous heritage that it represents to me.

Then it is a search in relation to what one sees and questions, and by this I mean other artists, exhibitions, books, images and stories that I collect.

Do you connect with younger artists? What would you say to them as they go forward with art making?

I have connected with artists of all kinds and ages and the only thing I tell them is that you always have to believe in what is becoming and that everything is a process, like a kind of vine plant that is taking its own form and essence.

Is there anything else you would like to share about your work in general or about your experience being part of the Babelmasks?

My work has been a process of believing and letting go of what I feel, and it challenges me as an Afro-indigenous person.

It makes me very happy to be part of this project where I reactivate my relationship with the masks that come from a childhood memory where I was afraid of three African masks and now they are part of my work.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH PAULA AND ALL THE TEAM!