Removal

The work of Bruno Pacheco is characterized by a specific ambiguity towards the field of representation. Despite its mostly figurative nature, his paintings, drawings, and objects disclose an anonymity characteristic to its subjects, may these be random objects or human figures, as is the case of Removal.

Immersed in an unknown activity, the work is a play of subtle anxiety and melancholy. Denying the spectator access to the narrative of the painting, may this be through the position or the involvement of its characters in an unspoken occupation – also known as the state of absorption -, Pacheco enhances our desire for involvement. By his physical relation to the work and anxious gaze, the spectator becomes a protagonist of Pacheco’s painting, actively participating in blurring the boundaries between the interior and exterior of the work. Pink layered sheets – possibly carpets or sheets of fabric, a dominant and unifying feature of the painting, collapse traditional division of painting into foreground and background while introducing a play with the principles of geometry, a symbol of modernism, and a frequent reference in the work of the artist.