Playing with Words and Music: The Eccentric World of Carlos Amorales

Carlos Amorales, born in Mexico City in 1970, is an artist with more than twenty years of experience in exploring the boundaries of language. Through a variety of media, including graphics, sculpture, film, performance, and music, he has challenged traditional notions of communication and expression. In this article, we will explore Amorales's artistic career, with a particular focus on his work La vida en los pliegues.

The Playful Deconstruction of Language

From the very beginning, Amorales has shown a fascination with language and its limits. Even his name is a game, going from Carlos Aguirre Morales to the play on words "Carlos a moral es." His work often involves a playful deconstruction of language and symbols, pushing them beyond their expected boundaries to create new meanings and associations.

Amorales's interest in language is evident in his most famous work, La vida en los pliegues. Presented at the Mexican pavilion at the 2017 Venice Biennale, this installation consisted of a series of ocarinas arranged to create an encrypted alphabet. In addition, Amorales created a series of scores that were later performed in the short film La aldea maldita, which tells the story of a family of migrants who are lynched upon arriving in a town.

"Being Between"

As Amorales himself explains, La vida en los pliegues takes its title from Henri Michaux's novel and is meant to represent "being between things." Whether it's between the pages of a book or a newspaper, between countries and cultures, or between opposing ideologies, Amorales is interested in exploring the spaces in between. This idea of "being between" has been central to his artistic exploration, with the mask serving as a visual language situated as a membrane between opposing realms.

A Career of Exploration

Amorales's work has been shown in galleries around the world, with some of his most important shows including Axiomas para la Acción (MUAC, 2018) and Herramientas de trabajo (MAMM, Medellín, Colombia, 2017). His career has been marked by a constant exploration of new media and new ways of expressing himself.

In addition to his work in the visual arts, Amorales has also been involved in music, performing as part of the collective Nuevos Ricos and releasing a solo album, The Repeating Eye, in 2014. He has also collaborated with other musicians, including the experimental group Meridian Brothers.

Conclusion

Carlos Amorales is an artist who has spent his career exploring the boundaries of language and expression. His work challenges traditional notions of communication and pushes language beyond its expected limits to create new meanings and associations. La vida en los pliegues, his most famous work, is a perfect example of this, using ocarinas and scores to create an encrypted alphabet that explores the spaces in between. Amorales's work has been shown in galleries around the world, and his constant exploration of new media and ways of expression has made him one of the most exciting artists working today.

In-Text Citation: (“Origen México”)