ProyectArte team has the pleasure of presenting 19 young people who will be a part of our Scolarships Program 2010. Fabián Oger, Adrian Aguirre, Diego Soriano, Francisco Shaller, Marcelo Alarcon, Simon Barrietos, Agustín Yugra, Jonathan Cardoso, Jonathan Swad, Martin Shibuya, Paula Puppo, Renata Fuchs, Damaris Argalas, Jazmin Chalko, Antonella Nicoli, Mariela Quevedo, Ana Franco, María Lujan Casanova y Enzo Dupré will study at ProyectArte between March 2010 and August 2011 with well known argentine artists. ProyectArte it´s grateful with all the young artists who apply and to the families for the effort and for the confidence deposited in the organization.

“In March 2009 a new group of eighteen students embarked on their scholarships at ProyectArte, and now the second semester of the three semester program is drawing to a close.
To speak of their paths during this first year is to speak of moments in their personal journeys and their personal discoveries. Therein lie a whole host of potentials which will continue to develop and which, to a greater or lesser extent, will continue to grow and to pave a way for these students in their art. Like anything, but particularly in creative affairs, change and evolution are of the utmost importance.
My role as studio assistant during their classes allows me to experience these processes from an intimate perspective as I help to guide the group on their journeys. And so I come to play with words and to attempt to convey the subtleties of these artistic experiences.
Fortunately from the very outset the group of eighteen students displayed remarkable heterogeneity, a condition they maintained throughout the year.
At the heart of the group, fast and expansive, we have Mariano and Laura.  Mariano, firm in his images, navigated from images evoking childhood, the structure of advertising and most recently, graffiti. Laura, very much contained by the notion of a strong presence, shows diversity both technically and stylistically through painting, line work and the use of objects. From there we move practically into the heart of the action of Camila T.; beginning with symbolism and an interest in the anatomy, she moves towards geometrisation, working with objects, jostling with ready made and sculpture and the occupying of space. Martina explores the depths of her image, allowing for freedom in the process and giving way to error thus, strengthening her interest and her characters, which, along with her inventive ability to orientate them in her compositions, remain the drive behind her creations.
To the East, Mora, gentle and meticulous, conceals within her image a yearning for light. It is a light which experiments with colour and with paint, a light which projects itself into another dimension. Nehuén, devoted to realism, has thrown himself into abstract expressionism, breaking with forms, rethinking the process of creating the image, re-evaluating the form, liberating colour. There appears in one part a naked body; the whole cosmos of Florentina’s art is contained within the figure of the body. She plays with and creates on and around the anatomy; from a drawing heavy with meaning through to the use of colour and the line of pastels and on to charcoal, open form and free hand. For Luisina, it is the stage on which her characters  which gives them life; she investigates the space, proposing content in terms of situation.
To the North, Matías, the eldest of the group, reflects maturity, rendering his image with subtlety, starting with characters which dissipate into the atmosphere, then through landscapes austere and electric, and now he immerses himself in darkness and in the reflections of light in space, themselves a form of abstraction. Soledad’s image is an illustrative one that has discovered her own palette of blues and greens, developing her painting to include scenes of a fantastic nature and images charged with symbolism. Nearby are those who most determinedly defend their own image, their poetry. Karina develops scenes in which the self-contained characters take charge, working from form and drawing strength from color. Antonella, often ironic, at other times naive, draws strength from this duality, discovering in the process the essence of her creations and her imagination. Victoria, decompressing a powerful interior world, legitimizes her image through suggestion, gradually liberating the brushstroke. Eugenia, always learning, connects with color, exploring contrasts, evolving from from uniform colors and grays towards combinations of colours and suggestive images of disturbing characters.
To the West, Jesica is present throughout her powerful images, coming into contact with the materials themselves, painting with her fingers, exploring gestures and materials, the form emerging from the storm. Camila R., influenced by the aesthetics of art nouveau, creates a vibrant image, characterised by strong color, an image of figures suspended in their own feelings, of forms which play freely, thereby balancing the strength of the palette and finding subtlety. Sacha, through experimentation with materials, size and different images, unites with color. From the figurative he throws himself straight into abstraction, refining his palette, adding texture, composing with both rhythm and form. And Cristina, with the landscape as a bastion where there may or may not appear a figure, with rhythmic brushstroke, perfects her use of space, her palette, growing the size and format of her works, working with charcoal and painting with passion.
Standing at this symbolic Southern point, I cross the threshold of a workshop, filled with projections by a group of 18 individuals; united, compassionate and creative.”

Daniel Scherman. Studio Assitant.

Florencia Buezas, a 2008 ProyectArte graduate and native of the city of Saladillo in the Province of Buenos Aires, is returning to her roots.
On the 9th of October, the young emerging artist, with the support of the city council and various other sponsors, inaugurated her first solo exhibit at Saladillo’s cultural center. The exhibition included a large number of works produced by Florencia during her time at ProyectArte, and was curated by artist Jorge Perrín, a former winner of the Grand Acquisition Prize of Argentina’s National Salon who was one of Florencia’s teachers during her time at ProyectArte. The show’s opening evening attracted a large number of attendees including Saladillo’s Mayor.
Talking about the experience, Florencia tells of how “The idea to hold an exhibition in my hometown came about at the insistence of friends and family who were not familiar with my work. The show was quite difficult for me since people were going to see a part of me that they didn’t yet know, it was like showing another side to myself.” But Florencia, with the support of close friends and family and the advice of Perrín, managed to summon the courage, with very satisfying results. Florencia showed herself she could overcome her fears and was able to offer her city and its residents something new.

Horacio D’Alessandro, an artist with a long and distinguished career , is one of ProyectArte’s 2009 faculty members.

The following is a conversation between Horacio D’Alessandro and Matías Prensa, one of ProyectArte’s current students.

MP: How did you get involved with Proyectarte?
HD: I was invited by one of my former students from Pueyrredón [art school], Luciana Marino [who is now Coordinator of ProyectArte's programs]. Since she already knew me she invited me to come and take part for which I am now very grateful.
MP: How would you describe your method of teaching?
HD: My method of teaching tends to be one that is not projective but rather comes from each one of the students; that is how you maintain diversity within a group. To achieve this I have to maintain a constant presence and encourage each student to focus on their own vision. That is how through interaction with one another we all grow. In my approach to teaching building a sense of harmony within the group is extremely important; ensuring that students get on well with each other. I am quite close to the students and I think this gives them the sense of security they need to forge a friendly environment.
MP: What are your aims for this group of students?
HD: My main objective is that they all manage to become artists, good artists. And that they also work hard.
MP: What do you think about ProyectArte’s focus on creating links between these young students and well-known artists?
HD: I think it is an excellent idea. If the student were forced to establish such links on their own, outside of ProyectArte, it would be extremely difficult for them. They would not know who to choose or access them.
MP: How do you see the current students of ProyectArte continuing this experience?
HD: I imagine there is a lot more to come. It’s important to note that we have not lost any students this year, those students who started with us almost a year ago are the same students we have today. I think this is to everybody’s merit. I try to adopt the role of coordinator, somebody who can help guide them on their way. I do not want to be a know-it-all, rather I want each one to make his or her own discoveries.

Horacio D’Alessandro is a painter and art professor. Director of the Department of Museology at the Museum of Modern Art of the City of Buenos Aires. Teacher at the National School of Bellas Artes “Prilidiano Pueyrredón” and at the Escuela Superior de Bella Artes “Ernesto de la Cárcova”. He is currently leading postgraduate seminars and is the Doctoral Director at the Instituto Universitario de Arte (IUNA).

On October 27th ProyectArte’s Prima gallery opened the exhibit “Aforismos Trashistas”, featuring the works of four ProyectArte graduates.
In the exhibition, curated by artist Mariano Giraud, the young emerging artists each demonstrated their own particular aesthetic.
At the front of the gallery, as if inviting people to enter, Ivan Enquin displays a series of stencils made from newspaper cutouts that evoke a vaguely Asian aesthetic. Damian Stendelis fills the space by recreating the atmosphere of a bar from an era which resists the passing of time. Juan Balza offers himself up as the protagonist of his work in his presentation of a life-sized cut-out of himself in the throes of artistic creation. In his piece, Mariano Garcia combines art with words and music, creating an artistic fusion which invites reflection.
Iván Enquin comments on the show’s name: “The title was suggested by Mariano [the curator] – I was able to identify with it straightaway because all four of us in one way or another have a TRASH connection in the way in which we understand and perceive ourselves as artists.”
The general public is invited to visit the exhibition at Prima Gallery, Castillo 540, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 4 – 8pm and Saturdays from 2.30 – 6pm.

Last Saturday 17th October the Fine Arts artist Gustavo Diaz met us in the gallery Proyecto A. After a comprehensive technical training at Otto Krause, Diaz decided to dedicate himself entirely to art.
From the moment in which the idea occurred to him, up to the actual selection of materials and his subsequent construction, including the design and assembly of the perfect packaging to protect his creations, Gustavo has been engaged fully and actively in all the stages which come together in the process of creation of works. Works which seem to dissolve into space, fusing with light and installing themselves with a unique presence.
Mariano Benedetti, one of the current students at the school of Proyectarte talks about Gustavo Diaz: “As an artist, he differs from others who have sampled similar techniques in that he introduces mathematical principles in the conception of his works, using graphic design programs for them. Gustavo told us that he uses mathematical functions to create enlargements, distortions, superpositions. These forms are reproduced in an artesanal form and outlined on paper. He also told us that in his sculptures he uses sheets of vinyl on top of acrylic, small geometric figures formed from glass, mirrors, holograms and plotting designs. His drawings in ink and pencil show an outstanding defintition. According to Gustavo, chaos theory (a branch of maths and physics which works with certain types of unpredictable behaviour in dynamic systems) influences his works. The theory, as he explains it, brings about a series of minute changes which form during the process and yet are conducive to completely divergent results. There is a further detail in that his works are often related to natural geometry. The materials that he uses and the superposition of elements produce quite an attractive and disconcerting effect, playing with the optical illusions of the spectator.”
According to Diaz, there are many objects in the world which are compromised by the overall value of that which they have created; the value of the material and its essences, of its content and reflection of beauty, of its transmission of music and words.

On October 29th the mural “Aire Libre” (Open Air) designed by artist Paula Socolovsky was inaugurated in the Escuela de Educacion Especial N 26 D.E., “Dr. Jorge Garber” in the suburb of Palermo. This mural is one of seventy murals that will be created between this year and next year as a commemoration of the bicentenery of the city of Buenos Aires. However, it is one of the only murals to have relied on the colaboration of four graduates from the Art Scholarship Program at Proyectarte and also the active participation of actual students attending the beneficiary institution.
Lucrecia Raimondi, Clara Desimone, Florencia Buezas y Mercedes Peñalba were summoned by Proyectarte at the request of the illustrator and artist to be her assistants in the creation of the mural for the duration of  September and October.
The day of the inauguration saw the attendance of artists, school authorities and representatives from the Central Office of the City of Buenos Aires. Lucrecia Raimondi tells of how “The mural Aire Libre is a piece of work replete with colours and friendly characters. It can be found on one of the largest walls in the patio at the back of the school. It is a space in which all sorts of activities take place from physical education to dance workshops.” For Florencia Buezas “the experience with Paula Socolovsky is very exciting because as well as understanding each other as artists, we seem to connect very well since we are all quite sensitive people. Our relationship meant that the working day was even more enjoyable. At some point we were able to transfer this incredible connection that we have on to the mural, rendering it with a perceivable magical touch in the colours and in the form in which the lines and the angles are developed”.
Proyectarte commends this kind of activity as an experience in artistic learning and social colaboration.