Today we are talking with Gabriel Pérez, a Venezuelan artist who works with techniques such as assembly, woodcut among other techniques and who shares part of his work.
Astrid: When did you realize that graphic arts was what you wanted to do?
Gabriel: When I entered the Armando Reverón Higher Institute of Plastic Arts I had the opportunity to experiment at a practical-theoretical level with the different specialties that were taught, such as: painting, sculpture, photography, ceramics, mixed media and graphic arts.
I was always interested in sculpture for the fact of being able to know and work with the combination of different materials in a three-dimensional way, so I decided to choose the specialty of sculpture, in which I was approximately three weeks, for different reasons I could not adapt to the sculpture workshop, perhaps because of the times required for the culmination of a sculptural piece or it could be because of my interest of wanting to see the expeditious completion of a piece. For this reason I decided to change my specialty and enrolled in graphic arts, which unconsciously was something I was already familiar with because before entering the university I did some street art specifically worked with stenciles and wallpaper as posters.
Already in the specialty of graphic arts I felt more comfortable with the workshop and the work done, perhaps because the processes in graphic arts are faster although they require a certain degree of discipline, concentration and patience.
Astrid: What techniques do you use and which one do you like the most?
Gabriel: In the specialty of graphic arts I learned from ancient traditional techniques to the newest printing techniques, starting from linocut, monochrome woodcut and polychrome woodcut, monotype, cardboard, metal engravings such as mezzotint, etching, sugar water, screen printing, lithography, and digital graphics. One of my favorites is the woodcut of the Greek xylon which means wood and graph which means inscription, which is a type of relief engraving, which is made by engraving a plate or wooden matrix, known in the East since ancient times to reproduce votive prints, the first copies in Europe date back to the late fourteenth century.
The first engravings in Venezuela date back to 1810.
I like woodblock engraving because of the nobility of the material with which you work and all the history behind it.
Astrid: What objectives or messages do you manage in your work?
My formal plastic work is related to the city and more specifically with the drift within the city of Caracas touching different aspects related to it, for this reason it is important for me to work with a percentage of the material specifically the wood in good condition found in the city, although I do not close myself to the possibility of working in a similar way with different cities of the world, In this same search I have combined my interest in sculpture and traditional graphic arts through the realization of a series of assembled modular pieces composed of multiple xylographic matrices inked and assembled together, no longer for the printing process of a single plate printed on paper, but of the set of assembled plates dialoguing directly with the viewer. These modules that can be joined and grow over time are called “The Assembled City” which raises among other aspects an analogy with the excessive growth and often without prior planning of the city of Caracas and its surroundings.
Astrid: Do you have an artist who will influence you?
Gabriel: Yes, of course, there are several among them is the master Alirio Palacios , when I met his work I could realize the multiple possibilities that the technique of woodcut allows, from a small piece in miniature format, to a piece of large dimensions already at a sculptural level, other artists that I admire his work is the Mexican José Guadalupe Posada, Armando Reverón, Alirio Rodrigues, Marisol Escobar, Swoon, Monica Canilao, among others.
Astrid: Have you exhibited nationally and internationally? Tell.
Gabriel: Yes, I think my plastic work has traveled more than me, nationally my work has been shown in different art fairs, galleries and museums in Caracas, Valencia, Maracay, Maracaibo and Amazonas and internationally it has been shown in Martinique, New York, Brazil and Colombia.
Astrid: Do you have any projects or dreams that you have not yet been able to realize in relation to your work?
Gabriel: There are many, but I think one of them is to have a large workshop where you can work comfortably and convene colleagues from the university to transmit knowledge to future generations.
Astrid: What other trades do you do apart from graphic arts?
Gabriel: Apart from the plastic arts in general I also like sewing and gastronomy, it seems to me that as engraving are meditative processes that keep you focused on the here and now.
Astrid: Do you think your work has any social impact?
Gabriel: I think it has it to the extent that knowledge is transmitted.
Astrid: What materials do you use when working?
Gabriel: In my formal plastic work I like to use approximately 50% of the material, specifically the wood found on the street, because the work also has to do with recycling and is partly a criticism of our consumer society.
Astrid: Would you do this for the rest of your life?
Gabriel: I think so, since art for me is a life commitment, it is not a fashion or a hobby, it is a necessity.
I have done many jobs and trades very different from each other, for the need to generate income but art has always been present in my life from an early age, and so I want it to be until the end of this journey called life.
Thanking Gabriel for sharing part of his experience and work, hoping you have enjoyed it and if you want to see more of his work I invite you to follow him on his social network.
Social media:
Instagram: @Gabrielperezarte