#15: El Alambique (The Still) 2008

Editor: So, this is "#15: El Alambique (The Still)" from 2008 by Marina Pallares. It has this really striking, almost old-fashioned stamp-like feel with its heavy lines and stark contrast. What jumps out to you when you look at this, with its mysterious equipment depicted? Curator: Ah, yes! It whispers of hidden practices and secrets! Instantly, I’m drawn to the boldness of the linework. Each line seems purposeful, digging deep, defining form while simultaneously adding an element of delightful chaos. And it reminds me, oddly enough, of trying to decipher my grandmother’s cryptic cooking instructions - a beautiful tension between precision and, well, a splash of artistic madness. Does the word "Alambique" trigger any thoughts for you? Editor: It kind of sounds like "alchemy"... Does it have anything to do with that? Curator: Precisely! The alambique *is* a still. Consider the transformation central to alchemy. Base metals into gold, mundane existence into, perhaps, artistic brilliance? Pallares’s work invites us to reflect on those hidden processes in life – the pressures and heat that transform us. Is that table offering support...or something more? Editor: Hmm... It's true that the patterned surface beneath seems like a shaky foundation for such precise equipment. I like the idea of it representing the chaos that gives rise to order. I hadn't really considered that it may be more than just equipment. Curator: And is "15" of significance do you think? Each viewer, with their singular memories, completes this evocative picture. Art, at its best, isn’t a lecture. Rather it is that whispered "Perhaps?" in your ear. Editor: That's so true, you see a painting differently each time depending on what you're thinking about! I think I will now whenever I look at this.