Interview with Heyoka magazine

Trophy Wives and Goddesses at

H A V E N  A R T S

In Mott Haven, the Bronx’s new arts neighborhood.

 

Installation shot at Bronx Haven of the arts.

 

John LeKay: What inspired the making of these new sculptures?

Ana de Portela: Two things. I want to give new meaning to some old golf trophies that belonged to my dad, so I used the trophies as armatures.  I also wanted to include chanting into the process of  making the sculpture while I draped the wet concrete to see if it had any noticeable effect.

JL: What kind of chanting and was any of this recorded on video or audio tape, like in much of your previous performance work?

AdP:  I made two sculptures with chanting Om Gum Gana pat ee ay na ma ha( phonetic) two without.. and people were drawn to those that I chanted.. at the time it was more of a testing of waters.  So, no, I did not record or video tape.

JL: Can you tell me about the process of making these pieces and what the fabric is you have used to dress, wrap these trophies?

AdP:  I used fine linens provided by a local Bronx/Houston European linen factory. I cut these into workable pieces, and then draped them  while dry in the round of the sculptures, to get an idea of the outcome, then mixed my concrete. from there I start dipping the fabric into the mixture and then onto the armatures. As I drape, I chant. It probably takes about twenty minutes and by the end its very exhausting, because the concrete is getting heavier as it sets up, and I'm breathing thru a respirator. It is like a performance.

JL: How many of these did you make and did you do the welding yourself?

AdP:  I made 22 completed sculptures and I started working on 5 more. We had to take some out because there was simply no space in the gallery or the studio.  I made all the work, and my assistants Carlos and Stanley did the welding. They are really wonderful to work with; they each presented me with "crowns", one of lead, the other of brass; they were intuitive gifts that I decide to incorporate.

JL:  Some of these pieces are really humorous and look like they could be doing yoga.  Also makes me think of Egyptian mummies or waitresses in restraints. Waitress and wives that are stuck in service jobs they don't like. Something also a little morbid. Maybe it's the old silver that gives it that feeling from another era. The white cloth bandages, like the silver's been wounded and broken and you are trying to heal it.  Did you make them with the title of your show in mind or did that come later?

AdP:  I did not give them the title of the show or explain the concept. I made four prototypes in San Antonio using plastic golf trophies that belonged to my father, cotton sheets and concrete aggregate and arrived at the title from those pieces and came up with the title of the show based on those pieces before making the work you see here with the silver-plated castoffs. The reactions have ranged from as you pointed out - morbid to lighthearted. I have my day to day favorites.

 

.JL:  What inspired the tear drop tar paintings and how do they relate to the sculptures?

AdP:  The day after the 9/11 tragedy, I was commissioned to do a piece for  it, and I came up with" twin tears" for the towers. I later learned that Kwan Yin is the goddess of compassion, and her name translates  to "one who hears the cries of the world".  So I have been doing  variations. They fit into the concept of the female ideal in spirit,  that of compassion.

JL:  What else are you working on?

AdP:  I just joined "Fine art adoption network, a project initiated by Adam Simon through Art in General, which is a forum for sharing art with collectors.  In the area of sculpture, I want to experiment with forms on a larger scale. then there are writing projects.

I'm seeing a lot of work and having experiences that I want to share with other people by way of short stories about the Bronx. Taking  photographs. Making a short film and thinking about what will be the focus of my next residency in Prague.
 

 

Photos Courtesy Haven Arts Gallery

www.havenarts.org

www.heyokamagazine.com