“Sculpture is the best comment that a painter can make on painting!”
- Pablo Picasso
“Picasso, Maybe Me 2” is a rare occasion in Macedonian contemporary art. An exhibition by a Macedonian artist, an exceptional intersection of the past and the present, in which the exhibited sculptures illuminate new light on the art of one of the greatest modern artists.
Filip Fidanovski is an artist, ceramicist, creating unique artwork in which the balance between form and colour is crucial. In his sculptures, Fidanovski often engages in and researches the boundaries and definitions of identity, its transformation and alteration, apparent in the cycle “Dialogues in Colour”.
The sculptures presented at this exhibition are the culmination of yearslong research. An innovative series, voicing not only the artist’s expression on the heritage departed to us by the most influential artists of the 20 th century, but rather reinvigorating the dialogue on the relationship existing among various art forms, posing questions on the relevance of classical art and the classical values of contemporary world.
All the sculptures in “Picasso, Maybe Me 2” were inspired by Pablo Picasso’s art. It is not a question of copies but rather reinterpretation of certain forms, elements recurring in the paintings of the renowned Spanish artist. Dynamic, layered sculptures, a specific research of Picasso’s art. Fidanovski, in particular, transforms the essence of Picasso’s art, producing sculptures that entice the spectator to establish a new, personal relationship with the ideas and emotions of the iconic artwork.
Fidanovski models his work on specific paintings by Picasso, resonating within him personally. Clearly, each selection is intentional, based on his subsequent emotional reaction, and the research-related topics of interest. Once the painting which appeals to him is identified, the conducts an in-depth analysis of its forms, colours and composition.
Picasso’s “Figure” from 1927 is the starting point for “A Child’s Game 1”. In this work, a sculptural interpretation of Picasso’s piece, Fidanovski faithfully pursues the master’s strokes, evoking the dynamic of a child’s game, the concocted rules constantly fluctuating. Equally, in “A Child’s Game 2”, a sculpture inspired by a project on a Picasso’s monument, following the monochromacity of the original, the artists creates a visual and almost tactile experience in which the golden leaves tend to accentuate the upper part of the presented elements.
Most of the selected Picasso’s works Fidanovski choose to “interpret” are female portraits. The spectators are clearly urged to deliberate on women’s identity and role in art.
The painting “Woman in a Red Armchair” (housed at the Menil Collection in Houston, Texas) is transformed in the sculpture “Portrait – Direction”. Here, Fidanovski recreates the central element from Picasso’s composition. However, now the element is (the female figure) presented in a dynamic arrangement using various intense colours (emphasizing the interconnection of its components), consequently emphasizing also the tension between individuality and unity.
“Woman in Orange” is a sculpture based on “Portrait of a Woman” from 1939, one of his many portraits of Dora Maar. Fidanovski, here, focusses on the raw emotion visible on the woman’s face. The model’s pain (?) and the strength are instantly distinguished. On the other hand, the face of the “Woman with Blue Eyes” seems to be pervaded by sadness. These two distinct instances clearly demonstrate that Fidanovski’s sculptures are not merely visually challenging, but rather emotionally powerful.
In all exhibited works, the two-dimensional form of the elements contained in Picasso’s paintings, in addition to the space they occupy, are transformed and modified. Perhaps the purest, rectilinear transformation from a painting in a sculpture can be observed only in the work “Portrait”, “developed from” “The Face”, a surreal portrait by Picasso from 1926.
Contrary to this, “In Love/Lovers” is a sculpture comprising of elements displaying aggressive lines and sharp forms. The elements depicting the lovers occupy unexpected angles, resembling broken surfaces. Fidanovski conceives a physical manifestation of the much prevailing emotions and stress in contemporary world, inviting the spectator to face the apparent tension between the lovers.
The impression is that the process of transforming the form’s two-dimensional spatiality from Picasso’s paintings in a three-dimensional element in Fidanovski’s ceramic sculpture (a process interpreted, perhaps, as the personal reading or translation from one artistic language into another), becomes primary for the artist. In essence, he is “seduced” by the spatial logic (or lack of thereof) of the elements occurring in Picasso’s works.
However, a more thorough analysis of his works reveals that once solving the logic and spatial riddle, Fidanovski reinterprets the composition elements, breathing new life into the now three-dimensional forms. This further interpretation of the three-dimensional element (now assigned with a new function, and placed in a narrative story) elucidates that Fidanovski is, in fact, having a dialogue with Picasso, and that his sculptures are a sort of personal conversation with the Spanish genius. This is conveyed in “Opera Diva next to the Piano”, “originating” from “Young Girl” from 1929.
To truly understand the profundity of Fidanovski’s works, it is important to mention and analyze the historical contextualization of the debate: Paragone . Paragone , meaning comparison in Italian, as the central debate related to art during the Italian Renaissance. It was a discussion in which various artists and scholars promoted painting and sculpture (and, to a degree other arts, such as poetry, music and architecture) as superior art forms. The fundamental question of the debate: to discern the highest and most expressive art form.
The greatest proponent for the superiority of painting above other arts was Leonardo da Vinci. Through a succession of eloquent arguments, in the first part of his “Treatise on Painting” ( Trattato della pittura ), Leonardo claims painting to be the noblest and most superior of all arts. Painting was, for Leonardo, a universal truth capable to perfectly reproduce forms in nature. It is well acknowledged that in order to demonstrate his arguments, Leonardo painted a painting in which the body of a man is visible, simultaneously, (due to reflection in the water, mirror and shield) from several sides. Something classical sculpture does not allow.
However, Fidanovski, with the sculptural artworks rooted in the two-dimensional world of painting, tends to highlight that sculpture, with its three-dimensional nature, offers bigger reality and physical presence than painting.
“Picasso, Maybe Me 2” demonstrates that art is an endless process of research and reinterpretation, and that Picasso’s heritage continues to be crucial to the general story of art. Fidanovski’s sculptures offer new lens to view the work of the great master, instigating discussions on the evolution of artistic expression and reinterpretation of historical narratives. A bridge between the past and the present, a reminder of the permanent influence Picasso’s vision has.
Finally, it should be stressed that not only does Fidanovski pays tribute to the great master but rather expands his personal identity as an artist. His sculptures challenge us to look beyond the surface, encourage to more profound research on how art can reflect and reshape our understanding of the world.
“Picasso, Maybe Me 2” is a clear and immense reminder that the past can inform the future and that the creational spirit is a timeless force, capable of bridging several generations.
Prof. d-r Kiril Penushliski
Skopje, 2024
