Gallery

Juan Ignacio Cabruja presents "BOKE" in the new Room II at CRUDO. BOKE is a Japanese concept meaning blur or haze. Blur, twilight, fog, and blurred boundaries are elements that repeat in Juan Ignacio Cabruja's production. In his "light paintings," he uses wooden boxes and natural canvas hiding a complex network of LED lights, which when plugged in, reveal atmospheric paintings referencing works by other artists, usually landscapes and still lifes. The abstract maps of colors generated resemble the act of squinting slightly and slowly letting in the light emanating from the original works.

Simultaneously, in this exhibition, Cabruja introduces oil paintings in black tones, aiming to generate a wide range of nuances through subtlety. These paintings, which initially appear completely black, reveal a broad spectrum of colors when observed with concentration.

In BOKE, the mixing of pigments and the blending of light are brought into tension. Cabruja explores light through oil pigment and twilight, and pigment through the light emanating from the colored boxes. Perception of colors, subtlety, and adjusting the eye to darkness are some of the atmospheric experiences proposed by the artist.