Pedro J. Perez at STC Library Art Gallery-Technology Campus
This exhibition is in a library, so I am going to draw a parallel between the organization of an exhibition and a written essay. This makes sense because the exhibition begins with an artist’s statement that is an essay about the exhibition. Perez’s statement is completely lacking the most important element of an essay, the introduction.
The most critical component of an introductory paragraph is the thesis statement, and without it you are lost at the onset. The result is an unfocused and undeveloped exposition of “ideas.” Perez starts off with some plagiarized text about Marx’s economic theory of alienation. He then segues to talking about alienation in a completely different context and with a completely different meaning. He states that "social" media has caused people to become socially alienated, isolated, and devoid of emotion. The additional two documents don't explain how these terms are similar or different. They just add to the confusion. Perez states that he is not judgmental in one document and then refers to “capitalist bastards” in another.
The artwork in the exhibition clearly reflects his lack of focus. The 11 artworks in the exhibition can be separated into four distinct groups, or paragraphs. The first paragraph contains digital artwork that is interesting. The artwork “Modern Man” is a composite of four faces. It’s a neat photoshop trick, but if we don’t have the explanation, how do we know it is a composite face? The clearest visual cues are the sad facial expression and references to social media in the background. Is it about being alienated from the products of our labor, social alienation, lack of emotion or social isolation? How do these ideas inform the two other digital prints that seem to explore humans being monstrously transformed by technology?
The remaining paragraphs are so different in style, technique, and aesthetic that it is difficult to understand how they might relate to each other and the mix of ideas presented in the artist’s statement. I did see some connection thematically, but I left the exhibition wondering if it was really all Perez’s work or if it was a group exhibition. On view until Dec. 9, 2011.
