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• Ahtzic Silis is a French – Salvadorian contemporary artist and designer. His multidisciplinary approach mixes ironwork, ceramics and photography to create sculpture, furniture and both graphic and interior design.
• His work Ahtzic
Silis belongs to a disillusioned generation, that of the children
of war. Born in El Salvador on the 20th November 1972 he has known
the horrors of a civil war that destroyed his country as well
as the fragile peace that followed. Through Art he has found the means of discovering himself, whilst engaging in a struggle: that of Art as a way of life. For Ahtzic, being an artist is a risky endeavour for which you must be ready to accept the consequences: ‘It is not enough to feel you are an artist, you have to be ready to suffer, to recognize your fears and your limits, to be able to subject yourself to worries, passions and daily obsessions. And even when you are able to transform all of these feelings into a work of Art, you are far from being considered an artist; quite the opposite, that is where the adventure begins...’ Ahtzic grew up in a small country, ravaged by violence and absence, where there was little room for budding young artists. At that time he resented the lack of initiative of the El Salvadorian artists and decided to travel, to go in search of other populations, as well as other techniques. He began his journey in Central America, Mexico, then in Turkey and now France, where he has been living for several years. Ahtzic’s journey continues in Lyon, where he has been based for eleven years. ‘France,
as an important step in my journey, has allowed me to evolve in
my work, despite the fact that Europe only respects contemporary
art when it answers to strictly intellectual parameters. Regardless
of the beauty and originality of my creations, their meaning can
neither be understood nor recognized, as Mayan culture and its
references have been reduced to rigid historical facts. Hence
the difficulty I’ve encountered in finding places to exhibit
my creations, which are far from the French standards. Highly
elitist, contemporary art has been established as the ‘trend
par excellence’, destined for a minority, a minority who
decide the future of this country’s culture. It’s
astounding to see that even Art has been institutionalized in
order to be controlled.’ To
create allows him to look for answers to the questions he poses
himself. He doesn’t enjoy trying to explain the sense behind
his works; he creates in order to express what he does not, cannot
and will not say. It is up to the individual to read between the
lines, to find his own path, his own answers in the curves of
wrought iron, in the Mayan glyphs from which Ahtzic draws inspiration.
‘As
a sculptor, my work is to find a modern reinterpretation of all
the passion contained in the myths of the sacred text Popol Vuh.
It is the magic of this culture, both legendary and marvellous,
which allows my hands to create. This reinterpretation extends
the vision of this culture and responds to the need to forge bonds,
to find the missing links between who they were, who we are and
who we claim to be, links which allow Latin American cultures
to be reflected in a common heritage, which offer the possibility
of enhancing a potential, an energy which only Latin America is
able to develop.’ Coupled
with this artistic research comes an inner desire to change the
world, the desire for art to be a tool which enables us to find
solutions to the social problems which define our world, by making
us protagonists in a transformation which allows us to cross the
internal boundaries that we have created, and thus invent, produce
and maintain solid, and more importantly, unique cultural richness.
‘In
relation to other materials and techniques, the Mayans did not
overly develop their metalwork, so the fact that I work with it
means that I am a new link in the chain of continuity. Without
this continuity, we can’t talk about transformation. By
transposing the designs of this mythology into a new material
– iron – I’m able to give them a new dimension,
thanks to the interaction between the lines and transparencies.
I’ve therefore been able to invent my own graphic vocabulary
which permits me to create both functional objects and sculptures.’ From
the heart of this graphic language Ahtzic Silis draws all the
wisdom necessary to probe the invisibility of our mass, which
allows him to understand his illusions, thus freeing the ideas
and shapes that he translates into each of his creations. And
from there, the interpretation of the world and the symbols that
he hears communicated... Iron may appear cold and rigid, yet once crafted by Ahtzic Silis, it takes form and becomes air, flames, lace and volutes. The wrought-iron sculptor gives it a life, a soul. It becomes alive, warmed by the rust that lends it a new colour and texture, until the artist decides what it is. In this way, each work of art has its own life, beyond that which we might imagine of it. It is enough to allow its silence to soothe you.
Text
by Pascale Amey & Ahtzic Silis
• Awards and competitions July
2006
‘Rompiendo Fronteras’ Award, Latin American Cultural
Space, Washington DC
• Bibliography -
Lyon-Québec Passion,
Emma Productions, La Biennale des Lions 2008
• External links Caña
Santa Web on art and Latin American Literature,
Canada
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