Colombia

Nicolás Consuegra

year born: 1976

gender: male

nationality: Colombian

Consuegra’s Colombia is a mirror made in the shape of the artist’s home country—a silhouette that has an important resonance for the artist. Consuegra’s mirrored Colombia is similar to an earlier version, made to be show opposite a mirror of the United States. Whether reflecting his two homes within one another (Consuegra studied in the US and has made several works about this experience of living in exile from his homeland), or simply reflecting its surroundings, Colombia is a simple yet evocative work about the identity of a nation, and the things that we project—really and metaphorically—onto its form. Nicolás Consuegra explores the contradictions of modern visual culture through his photographs, sculptures, paintings, and installations. Much of his work deals with subtle differences between one thing and another, whether they are visual differences or semiotic shifts. He creates visual games specifically intended to engage with Modernism’s crisply defined aesthetics. Consuegra’s shrewd alterations expose the superficiality of our shared understanding of the mid-twentieth century, calling into question our perception of reality and temporality.

Nicolás Consuegra (b. 1976, lives in Bogotá) explores the contradictions of modern visual culture through his photographs, sculptures, paintings, and installations. Much of his work deals with subtle differences between one thing and another, whether they are visual differences or semiotic shifts.