Untitled (Les tables de geographie reduites en un jeu de cartes), 2022
Oil and acrylic on archival printed canvas
82 3/8 x 105 3/4 in.
209.2 x 268.4 cm
209.2 x 268.4 cm
$ 285,000.00
Sold
Further images
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 1
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 2
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 3
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 4
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 5
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 6
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 7
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 8
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 9
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 10
)
-
(View a larger image of thumbnail 11
)
In this painting, entitled Untitled (Les tables de geographie reduites en un jeu de cartes), Firelei Báez has conjured a stampede of horses in various states of abstraction. Like a...
In this painting, entitled Untitled (Les tables de geographie reduites en un jeu de cartes), Firelei Báez has conjured a stampede of horses in various states of abstraction. Like a Rorschach, the more one gazes into the alchemical pours of paint, the more horses become apparent. For Báez, pours are markers of time and space; a doorway into her own experiences. This painting was begun during her residency at the American Academy in Rome, where Báez encountered many heraldic sculptures and paintings of horses. Unlike the images Báez encountered in Rome, these wildly rendered horses are not agents of battle or royal conquest, instead they are unbridled and free.
Beneath this dynamic painting is a rare geographic set of 52 playing cards game. developed by Pierre Duval in 1688. The broadside is dedicated to the Grand Dauphin (1661-1711), the son of King Louis XIV (1638-1715), and decorated with a royal coat of arms. The cards include inset maps of Africa, America, Europe, Asia, each represented by a playing card suit; clubs, spades, hearts and diamonds. The face cards contain a medallion portrait of a different leader for each continent, providing information, some reverent and others as caricature, on the countries represented. In this painting, Báez responds to the gamifying of colonial conquest, releasing nature from the arrogant grasp of man.
Beneath this dynamic painting is a rare geographic set of 52 playing cards game. developed by Pierre Duval in 1688. The broadside is dedicated to the Grand Dauphin (1661-1711), the son of King Louis XIV (1638-1715), and decorated with a royal coat of arms. The cards include inset maps of Africa, America, Europe, Asia, each represented by a playing card suit; clubs, spades, hearts and diamonds. The face cards contain a medallion portrait of a different leader for each continent, providing information, some reverent and others as caricature, on the countries represented. In this painting, Báez responds to the gamifying of colonial conquest, releasing nature from the arrogant grasp of man.
Provenance
In this dynamic painting Firelei Báez has conjured a stampede of horses in various states of abstraction. Like a Rorschach, the more one gazes into the alchemical pours of paint, the more horses become apparent. For Báez, pours are markers of time and space; a doorway into her own experiences. This painting was begun during her residency at the American Academy in Rome and because there were so many heraldic sculptures and paintings of horses they began to manifest in the work. Unlike the images Báez encountered in Rome, these horses are not agents of battle or royal conquest, instead they are unbridled and free.
Exhibitions
James Cohan Tribeca, Americananana, October 27 – December 21, 2022
Firelei Báez, ICA Boston, Boston, MA, April 4 – September 2, 2024
Firelei Báez, Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, CA, November 3, 2024 – March 16, 2025
Firelei Báez, Des Moines Art Center, Des Moines, IA, June 14, 2025—September 21 2025 (forthcoming)