Image - Allan Finkelman
Human beings have always looked for a way to let off steam, to be able to express, in one way or another, everything that they carry inside and that they need to be able to communicate. Sometimes the audience is his family or friends, others are unknown people, and many others he is himself: And all while a part of him tells him that while he is doing his work, or once it is finished, you will find the answer to your questions that you long for.
Great creations are often the result of a complicated childhood or life, as happened to the contemporary artist Louise Bourgeois. Now, and until September 4, you can see a part of his work at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. To help you understand her and, incidentally, start to surprise you, we attach some images of her works.
Image - Robert Mapplethorpe
Louise Bourgeois was born in Paris in 1911 and died in New York in 2010. She has been one of the most influential modern artists, and it is no wonder: her work, being inspired by the fears and insecurities that she had during childhood, have a strong emotional charge that you can see it as soon as you see her, and that, despite everything, it is said that she was always cheerful and upbeat. It was that force that he used to face the problems that life was posing, and that which is manifested in his sculptures, drawings and installations that he left us. What's more, began to create his Cells from the age of 70.
With them he intended to build architectures in which he could move, made up of doors, wire mesh or windows loaded with strong symbolism. The house, for example, was a recurring element: it was presented as a place of protection, but also as if it were a prison. As a curiosity, it must be said that women were synonymous with home. Bourgeois supported the feminist struggle, and that is something that became clear during the years 1946-47, in his paintings "Femmes Maison" exhibited in Paris.
Image - Peter Bellamy
In addition, he experimented a lot with human emotions, and above all with the one that makes us feel most uncomfortable: fear. For her, fear was synonymous with pain. Pain that could be physical, mental, psychological, or even intellectual. Nobody ever gets rid of feeling it or, rather, sometimes throughout their existence, so we all want to avoid it or, at least, know how to deal with it. While some choose to write a novel, avoid that situation that they like so little, or go out for a walk, very effective ways, by the way, to feel calm and calm again, Bourgeois chose to use it to create sculptures and drawings.
A very original way of getting what they see identify with you is, of course, putting something that identifies you, be it your style, the design you have created, ... or incorporating personal objects into your work. That is something the artist did, who kept photographs, letters, clothes, ... even her diaries where she wrote everything she saw and did during her childhood. As she herself said: »I need my memories are my documents». And what better way to remember the past than to see, touch, take what belongs to that time again to feel again the emotion that you had in the past. Although, yes, if you had to go through bad times, it may be better to forgive the past to be able to continue your routine in the present.
Image - Christopher Burke
Las Celdas, an exhibition that you can see until September 4 at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, was created towards the end of the artist's life, at the age of 70. These creations present two totally different universes: an internal world and an external one that, combined, make the viewer feel some kind of emotion, which will probably be accompanied by reflection. Indeed, Bourgeois's work invites reflection, not only of the sculpture itself, but also of our own existence, of our own world.
Guggenheim Museum hours and rates
You can see and enjoy the exhibition The Cells, by the artist Louis Bourgeois, Tuesday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 20 p.m.. The rates are as follows:
- Adults: 13 euros
- Retirees: 7,50 euros
- Groups of more than 20 people: € 12 / person
- Students under 26 years: 7,50 euros
- Children and Friends of the Museum: free
Image - Maximilian Geuter
So now you know, if you plan to go to Bilbao or its surroundings during these months, don't miss Las Celdas. Some amazing works by an influential artist who did not leave indifferent when she finished them, nor have they done so to date. This is an exhibition that, when you have the opportunity to see it, you will hardly forget. Also, if you are one of those who like to reflect on life and the world we have, Surely the time you spend in the museum will pass you very quickly, almost without realizing it.
Enjoy it.