Josilton Tonm’s art in Salvador
The artist from Bahia exhibits wood sculptures at Roberto Alban Art Gallery
The simplicity of the shapes and the intuitive production process based on the reuse of wood are strong features in Josilton Tonm’s work. They’re also the essence of the exhibition that opens on December 6th, at 8:00pm, at Roberto Alban Art Gallery. The show, called A Gangorra Rasteira e o Caracol de Clarysse, gathers around 30 pieces by the sculptor and instigates the public to think about the beauty and lightness that are hidden behind the shapes and textures that incorporate the space.
Concept is everything. And it’s diverse and overlaid, sometimes ambiguous, concepts that are transmitted by each piece produced by Josilton Tonm, whose work was initiated amid the creative vigor that marked the production of artists in Bahia in the 1970s, and which presents its own characteristics, based on the inventiveness and perfectionism in the handling of wood and other materials that also end up incorporated to his sculptural work.
"He is, mainly, a creator of concepts, visual and sensorial experiences of the most complex kinds and with the use of the most unexpected materials. Visiting the work of this artist is coming across an endless ability to create, recreate and transcend. The amplitude of his work owes very little to his more than three decades of creation and a lot to the qualitative peculiarities of what he creates and how he creates", writes the artist Eduardo Boaventura.
The works by Josilton Tonm selected for this exhibition mark his production of sculptures in wood or, as he prefers, "reliefs for walls where geometrical shapes proliferate". The highlights are the two compounds after which the exhibition is named. A Gangorra Rasteira is literally a jigsaw that hangs from the ceiling, bringing a concept of movement and tridimensionality, with its ludic function and "interaction with the public, who may go around it". The second compound, called Caracol de Clarysse, reunites seven works that form a narrative developed by the artist.
In his trajectory Josilton Tonm has tried not to limit the comprehension of his work to a determined concept or school. "I’m always experimenting; this is the essence of my work", says the artist, who initiated his production in his home town, Alagoinhas, already working with wood of different qualities, shades, textures and state of preservation. In the 1980s, he started to add other materials (such as stones), but never neglecting a pristine finishing, producing works of extreme refinement and beauty.
Josilton Tonm’s work emerges from a universe that is his own enchantment with nature’s materials. Cut, drill, polish are his "work verbs", always meeting the demands that chance provides. That’s how an old, abandoned tridimensional door can become a sculpture. Wood lattice, broken toys, wood boxes found in the streets have the same use. "The other day, two wooden elephants were thrown away. I collected them at once and built this work", says Tonm, between amused and proud, pointing to a sculpture in his atelier.
Autodidact, Josiltom Tonm has already participated in innumerous group shows and three editions of the Recôncavo Biennial, promoted by the Dannemann Cultural Center, in São Félix, Bahia. In the last one, in 2012, his work received the Acquisition Award and became part of the institution’s collection. He also participated in the Exposição Proposta MAM (Salvador/1980); the Meeting of Northeastern Plastic Artists (Salvador/1981); the 9th National Show of Plastic Arts (Recife/1986). He carried out several solo exhibitions in Salvador and other cities.
Exhibition: A Gangorra Rasteira e o Caracol de Clarysse/ Josilton Tonm
Opening: December 6th 2016, at 8:00pm
Hours: December 6th 2016 to January 7th 2017 (Monday to Friday, 10:00am to 7:00pm; Saturday, 10:00am to 1:00pm)
Venue: Roberto Alban Galeria
Address: Rua Senta Pua, 53 - Ondina Tel. + 55 713243-3982/ 3326-5633
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