INMA BARRERO, TERRUÑOS
curated by Dr. Barbara Stehle
At the Instituto Cervantes
Tree of life, 2023 · Porcelain, glazes, steel, LED light
I am fascinated by objects created for magical or religious purposes. Objects that put us in touch with a higher power. In Catholicism we have the ex-votos. I studied these types of objects all around the world in my travels. All cultures have them. For me, the tree of life is about the healing power associated with objects. Every morning, I would start. I would make a form that came straight to my mind. Some of these things were inspired by memories, what I had seen in temples, churches. They were spiritually charged. I made a lot of body parts: eyes, bones, hands, feet, hearts, breasts. But also symbolical fruits like pomegranates, grapes. I stringed things together: fish, octopus, creatures from the sea and from the earth, some abstract shapes too. The white and blue beads are metaphors for water drops. They also recall prayer beads which exist in many religions. I think of the Tree of Life as a prayer to the Mother Earth. Her veins are growing from the soil up, along the tree.