7 September–7 October 2011
Patricia Conde Galería
Lafontaine 73
Col. Polanco, Mexico City
info@patriciacondegaleria.com
“The subway fled past him, cream tile, jet-black, cream tile, jet-black, numerals and darkness, more darkness, and the total adding itself.”
—Ray Bradbury, Farenheit 451
As part of the program of Fotoseptiembre, Patricia Conde Galería presents an outstanding exhibition that differs from other shows held in the gallery. In “Montag entumecido” José Antonio Martínez, Mexican photographer, settles his own conception of time in a solo show integrated by two works.
The content of each piece is the personal exploration of José Antonio Martínez, applying distinct photographic techniques. The aesthetic journey through the structural forms of pre-Columbian codices, through the post-apocalyptic visions of Ray Bradbury.
The work in its entirety, consummates through the numerical coincidence of the car’s odometer. The cell phone camera, immediate and slave, is the medium of choice to record reflections on the closed and overwhelming environment of a drive where time stands still; only perceptible when transformed into progressive numbers epitomizing a journey that leads nowhere.
During the creation of this project, incidentally, in one of these drives, a voice on the radio starts to read a piece of Fahrenheit 451 describing the main character in the subway. This circumstance allows the artist to record a video that embraces the core numerical-temporal scheme of that specific passage.
This multidisciplinary photographic composition makes us accomplice of Martinez’ insights and seeks to provoke in the spectator the thrill of futility of a car trip, any day, in Mexico City.
