Jimena Sarno
taracatá trabaja
November 17 - December 22, 2018Visitor Welcome Center presents taracatá trabaja, a solo exhibition by Jimena Sarno. Considering the gallery’s urban surroundings, taracatá trabaja is a site-specific, sculpture and sound installation that turns the iconic rooftop sign into an analogue broadcasting site. Diagonally dividing the gallery interior, the piece is situated in dialogue with the exterior cityscape through the two windows of the space. The sign’s metal structure holds fifty porcelain plates hand thrown by the artist, each a container of a musical movement conceptualized by the artist and composed by Argentinian musician, Axel Krygier. The score, inscribed onto the plates, will be read and performed live during the opening reception.
taracatá trabaja uses the iconic Argentinian folk song, Malambo del Hornerito, as a point of departure. It is an ode to the Argentinian national bird—the serially procreating, monogamous, and hard working hornero who builds his home from spit and dirt. The malambo is a traditional Argentinian competitive tap dance for men. The musical composition of taracatá trabaja is derived from the two onomatopoeias in the folk song: taracatá, characterizing the sound of laborious work (i.e. fields being plowed and nails being hammered) and chapalea, a verb evolving from the sound of squelching in mud. Centering the hornero within an economy of sound, Sarno reveals the failure of meritocracy to recognize self-determination and imagination within the body politic. In taracatá trabaja, the tenderly hand drawn hornero rests and enjoys himself on the porcelain surface, flying and perching throughout the piece to remind one of the comforts and complexities of making a home.
Jimena Sarno is a multidisciplinary artist, educator and organizer. She works across a range of media including installation, sound, video, text and sculpture. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and currently living in Los Angeles, her experience as a South American immigrant informs her practice. Her work has been exhibited at LACE, The Mistake Room, Human Resources, PØST, the Museum of Latin American Art, UCI Contemporary Art Center, Control Room, The Luminary, Fellows of Contemporary Art and Grand Central Art Center among others. She is the recipient of the 2015 California Community Foundation Fellowship for Visual Artists and the 2017 Foundation for Contemporary Art Emergency Grant.
