As I enter the doors of the Guggenheim Museum located beside Central Park in New York City, I saw the gigantic abstract paintings by Hilda Af Klint and I felt instant connection. Her use of shapes, movements and colors are mesmerizing. Looking at her work, It is so magical, enchanting and big insize so engulfing as if you are ready to step into a portal to a new dimension. It creates such feeling of wonder, amusement and playfulness.
It is really interesting to see how compared to her paintings exhibited in the beginning of the exhibit, The Ten Largest which is composed of ten large beautiful, vibrant, fleeting and expressive paintings made in 1907 progress to a more rigid, structured and measured abstract pieces further in her career. When she was younger, she was full of life and hope which was visible from her The Ten Largest paintings. One can feel her whimsicality and eagerness dreaming of what could be. “In the presence of af Klint’s paintings, you can viscerally feel her need to convey that message—and her success in doing so. In many of the works, her vivid palette and dynamic forms practically vibrate” (Dover). One can feel the spark within her soul looking for answers as she tries figures out her identity, as well as her purpose in life through calling out in the universe. She has such curiosity along with such wisdom and aspiration in life as if because of the harsh circumstances driven from her real life problems, this is the only way she can grasp the feeling of hope and strength by believing that there is something bigger and more powerful in this world.
As she grew up, she was discouraged by the people around her. Being a woman in the 1900s, she is put in a box and is told to stick with what a woman does which is household chores and taking care of the children; “During that period, women’s subject matter was circumscribed by the mundane, the domestic worlds of animals and flowers, to which they were forcibly confined” (Ventura). No one believed her when she said she was an artist, being the first abstract artist ever. Discouraged, she kept her works a secret not to be seen 20 years after her death. Now that we are gifted to witness her works after two decades of secrecy, we now have a “female, spiritual, ecological, collectivist – eroded by the rise of industrial modernity, values we desperately need to reclaim” (Ventura).
Due to her circumstances, the challenges she dealt with such as the unacceptance from her society as well as the illness of her mother, she found herself turning to her spirituality as the source of her strength. She and 4 other women get together to call onto the spirits while she acts as the vessel through painting and her exploration of shapes, value and color. “The Five believed that they communicated with and received messages from beings of higher consciousness by entering trance states or using a psychograph (a tool used to record psychic transmissions)” (Dover). As you go further down the timeline, it is visible that her beliefs has changed as she matures and dealt with the reality of life, as if she realized that not everything is favored by the spirits in this realm.
Spirituality plays a big role in my Identity as well as in my art. I consider myself as an abstract artist, and I derive all my inspiration and my reasoning within me through my spirituality and faith. Since abstraction doesn't necessarily have distinguishable representation, I naturally disconnect from materialism, or physicality of things but rather than going in deeper naturally, transcendental and divine. I connect well with the earthly essence as well as the celestial and this transcends in my work through my use of floral patterns along with an angelic and divine impression.
I Believe that as an artist, every piece of art you produce a self portrait. Each work is a reflection of your personality, emotions and beliefs, and as a big believer of Christ. Growing up in a Catholic household, I’ve always been taught to believe and trust in God. I’ve always been taught to pray for my needs as well as to thank my blessings, as God will guide me and help me out in this journey. Like Hilda af Klint, I connect deeply with my spirituality and faith in hopes that this will be my guidance as I get through in life.
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