Argentine mysticism dominates Norberto Pagano's art

By Parvathi Nayar Narayan

JAKARTA (JP): Latin American art has certainly become popular in the recent past, generating public interest in the West, acquiring a core group of collectors and doing well in auctions held by Sotheby's and Christie's in 1994.

This interest has been trickling, but very slowly, into Southeast Asia. For instance, the Fel Gallery in Singapore specializes exclusively in art by contemporary artists from Argentina, Peru and other Latin American countries. It was therefore interesting that to mark the occasion of the National Day of the Republic of Argentina, on May 25, the Embassy of Argentina brought to Jakarta a selection of paintings by an Argentine artist, Norberto Pagano.

Norberto Pagano was born in Olivos in the Province of Buenos Aires in 1940. He has exhibited widely in his country, and his work can be found in many Argentine museums and embassies around the world.

The works exhibited here in Jakarta fall into three broad categories: American myths, Argentine Legends and American and Argentine landscapes. The paintings range in price from US$ 260 to $780.

The artist is obviously fascinated by his country's folklore and all the mysticism associated with it. Juan Carlos Morelli, the Ambassador of the Republic of Argentina elaborated on this, saying, "Norberto Pagano is in love with the myths as were the great artists of history, a Homer in ancient Greece, an Inca Garcilaso in colonial America and more recently the Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges."

It would be easy for an onlooker in Indonesia to find links in Norberto Pagano's paintings with Indonesian, particularly Balinese, customs. A case in point is the Zupay series. Zupay is a quichua word for the Minotaur-like beast that is the epitome of evil. The people in the northwest of Argentina, Peru and Bolivia celebrate the traditional ritual involving the Zupay with religious offerings of fruit and flowers, gold and silver articles, song and dance, wherein this archetype of Satan dons fear inspiring masks.

The imagery in these ceremonies involving the Zupay are certainly reminiscent of the Barong dances. The fight, of course, is between the forces of good and evil, the recurring theme of all myth and legend. Thus it comes as no surprise that visitors to the exhibition were reminded not just of Balinese elements in Indonesia, but also of Greek and Roman myth, even Egyptian motifs and legends from the Indian subcontinent. The language of the myth is, after all, universal.

However Pagano's obsession is with capturing images that are purely Argentinean. Accordingly, the artist spent a considerable amount of time traveling through his country, studying ancient traditions and how people live. He developed a vocabulary of images -- totems, cacique (headmen of American Indian tribes), amauta (Inca philosophers), strange beasts like the machucho, and birds -- which he returns repeatedly to in his paintings.

Within the landscapes, those the artist calls American Countryside series are quite different from the ones belonging to the Argentine Countryside series. The former is more abstract and liberally sprinkled with totemic symbols, while the latter is rooted in realism. Among the Argentine landscapes Puerto Patagonico (Patagonic Port) is one of the most dramatic. Done in acrylics blocked in heavy masses, it depicts a crimson boat on vivid ultramarine waters, black in parts, with sea and sky merged together. The limited palette is effective, with textural interest created with the acrylic being manipulated like oil paints. The artist uses his colors to maximum effect without muddying them.

In Costa del Rio Pilcomayo, Formosa on the other hand, he treats the acrylic like watercolor, establishing the scene of trees and water with flowing washes, connected by a strip of startling scarlet.

This trick of dividing the horizon line using a splash of color is also seen in Estuario de Ibera, Corrientes, which is done in inks and is part of the same series. Here, a base color wash that subtly links the two halves of the painting is left uncovered only at the horizon line as a brilliant line of yellow. The top half of the painting, the sky, consists of carefully spattered layers of blue, purple and red paint, while the lower half or foreground depicts the grasses and watery stretches of the Ibera estuary. The two halves of the painting are thus done in two different styles.

The artist tries to link two different techniques again in El Machucho, in the Myths series, but not quite so successfully. The strange two headed beast encased in strong outlines, with a watery wash without and totemic motifs within, does not have the same fluency as his landscapes. Actually, where the totemic images and mythical subjects are concerned, despite the similarity in treatment, some, such as Toro Zupay en Negro and Amautas Conversando II, are more fluid. The former because of its implicit movement. The artist's naturalistic landscapes are very simple, no doubt, but are cleanly executed and among the most appealing work on show.

What is so encouraging is that, increasingly, the various embassies are bringing artists and paintings from their countries to Jakarta. It is always interesting to see the creative work produced in different parts of the world. It may be an idealistic notion, but this exposure does help in our understanding of the diverse strains of culture that make up that all encompassing word, "humanity". Art should have no limitations. Indeed, what better ambassador than art, to move us along towards becoming international citizens in a world without boundaries?

The works of Norberto Pagano can be viewed at Duta Fine Arts Foundation, Jl. Kemang Utara 55A, Jakarta Selatan, until June 8, 1996. Admission is free.