Art Opening and Artist Talk November 18th, 6-8 PM. Sisyphus A selection of new works Expressiones Artists in Residence Federico Rosa, AIR from Honduras Expressiones Cultural Center is very proud to launch Sisyphus, an exhibition made during his stay in New London as part of his artist-in-residence experience. The title of this exhibition – is a reference to the Greek myth of Sisyphus – the tale of a king who, for cheating death, enraged the gods so much that Hades punished him by condemning Sisyphus to push a boulder up a mountain only for it to roll back down again, for all eternity. “Sisyphean” has invaded our language as an idiom for a difficult, yet pointless task. Albert Camus, the French existentialist, used the myth as a metaphor for our human predicament: if our existence is meaningless, thus futile, how do we make sense of it? This is our choice, according to Camus, and not our dilemma; at the end of his essay “The Myth of Sisyphus”, he states that we must imagine Sisyphus happy. . About the exhibit These new works reveal a thorough understanding achieved through processes of experimentation of the materials at hand, consisting of multiple superimposed layers, where the effect of a gradual, haphazard palimpsest starts to become a much more considered, intentional layering and removing of paint, cutting, and placing in a rigorous fashion, with obvious nods to minimalism, neo expressionism, and of course, dada and surrealism. The availability of all these languages places the artist within a cacophony of sources, with which he engages in a thorough dialogue with the practices that have come before him, including the works of artists who have switched multiple languages simultaneously. About the artist Federico got his Bachelor of Arts at The City and Guilds of London Art School, and his Master of Arts (Fine Art: Sculpture) at The Slade School of Fine Art, University College of London. He is a multifaceted artist with a wide range of solo and group exhibitions in Germany, Belgium, Austria, the United States and his native Honduras. He has also held diplomatic posts representing his country abroad and has been a columnist for several publications.
