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Deciphering a Life in the Art
of Mauricio Toussaint
The Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges wrote a story about a cartographer so obsessed with the exact recording of the geographic features of the island on which he lived -mountain, river and tree-that the chart he created eventually enshrouded the land. In symbolic form, Mauricio Toussaint also makes charts, but these record his life-heart, soul and mind. Through the icons he has created, we are able to glimpse the universe the artist inhabits and the roles, positive and negative, those around him play.
In his most recent artist's interview, Toussaint said, "As a Mexican, I cannot be free of the culture that I was exposed to throughout my childhood. I think that when I start a painting, It unconsciously arise that side of Mexico in me." Indeed, the culture of his country of origin is evident in each piece he creates, evident in his choice of materials and the symbols he employs.
The codices, texts of the ancient inhabitants of Mexico, were written on the rich and earthy Amate paper, still used today for spells and rituals. This is the same paper on which Mauricio paints his stories in the musky and vibrant tones of nature (or on linen, like the textiles from primordial burials). Like the codices, he tells of events from his life and we must decipher them as an archeologist decodes glyphs. Speech is indicated with the volute mark that the Aztecs used in codex paintings. The natural flow of words is broken and divided, sometimes backwards, as it spirals through the picture plane or, like the glyphs that decorate Mayan ceremonial ceramics, forms an architectural framework.
It is impossible to ignore the presence of the Catholic Church in Toussaint's native land and its presence may be sensed in his paintings as well. Gold leaf is reminiscent of the heavy gold decorations of ultra-Baroque colonial churches. At its best, Christianity is a form for humans to reach toward higher states, a prevalent theme in the paintings.
La Máxima de Oro is about loving god above anything else. The lambs allude to the Christian metaphor of Christ and his followers as the lambs of God. Stigmata, the wounds of the crucified Christ, appear as representations of devotion, holiness and consciousness. The cruciform at once references the cardinal points of north, south, east and west and the cross of the crucifixion. Here, it is often shown with a heart or flower at the crossing point, the place where the sacrifice occurs-literal for the Aztec and Maya and symbolic in the catholic mass.
But Mauricio Toussaint is not exclusively the product of his past. As evident in this art, he lives in two worlds at once: the south and the north, the scientific and the mystic, the emotion and the intellect.
Joanne Stuhr
Independent Curator of Latin American & Southwestern Art
February 2003
of Mauricio Toussaint
The Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges wrote a story about a cartographer so obsessed with the exact recording of the geographic features of the island on which he lived -mountain, river and tree-that the chart he created eventually enshrouded the land. In symbolic form, Mauricio Toussaint also makes charts, but these record his life-heart, soul and mind. Through the icons he has created, we are able to glimpse the universe the artist inhabits and the roles, positive and negative, those around him play.
In his most recent artist's interview, Toussaint said, "As a Mexican, I cannot be free of the culture that I was exposed to throughout my childhood. I think that when I start a painting, It unconsciously arise that side of Mexico in me." Indeed, the culture of his country of origin is evident in each piece he creates, evident in his choice of materials and the symbols he employs.
The codices, texts of the ancient inhabitants of Mexico, were written on the rich and earthy Amate paper, still used today for spells and rituals. This is the same paper on which Mauricio paints his stories in the musky and vibrant tones of nature (or on linen, like the textiles from primordial burials). Like the codices, he tells of events from his life and we must decipher them as an archeologist decodes glyphs. Speech is indicated with the volute mark that the Aztecs used in codex paintings. The natural flow of words is broken and divided, sometimes backwards, as it spirals through the picture plane or, like the glyphs that decorate Mayan ceremonial ceramics, forms an architectural framework.
It is impossible to ignore the presence of the Catholic Church in Toussaint's native land and its presence may be sensed in his paintings as well. Gold leaf is reminiscent of the heavy gold decorations of ultra-Baroque colonial churches. At its best, Christianity is a form for humans to reach toward higher states, a prevalent theme in the paintings.
La Máxima de Oro is about loving god above anything else. The lambs allude to the Christian metaphor of Christ and his followers as the lambs of God. Stigmata, the wounds of the crucified Christ, appear as representations of devotion, holiness and consciousness. The cruciform at once references the cardinal points of north, south, east and west and the cross of the crucifixion. Here, it is often shown with a heart or flower at the crossing point, the place where the sacrifice occurs-literal for the Aztec and Maya and symbolic in the catholic mass.
But Mauricio Toussaint is not exclusively the product of his past. As evident in this art, he lives in two worlds at once: the south and the north, the scientific and the mystic, the emotion and the intellect.
Joanne Stuhr
Independent Curator of Latin American & Southwestern Art
February 2003
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From the Outside In De afuera para Adentro
Mauricio Toussaint, a self-proclaimed exile from Mexico, has produced a body of work that is both reflective and documentary of this stage of his life. Removing himself from Mexico has given clarity and distance in the work, particularly in the drawings, to examine experiences in his life without intrusive cultural intervention.
Toussaint lovingly takes seemingly simple cultural icons, such as the lotus root, eyes, and the skull associated with the “Day of the Dead” ceremonies and uses them to elucidate various past life experiences.
Writings and language add an additional level of meaning, bringing in references to creation (in general) and the creation myth. The drawings are subtle, executed with humble materials on Amate (hand made indigenous Mexican paper made from bark), building layers of soft color, this process itself being a metaphor for the transition of the thought to the material world. Even the framing reflects this subtle shift as each level becomes denser as it appears.
The pieces are highly personal and self-revelatory, the narrative speaks to all. Toussaint’s scrutiny of childhood and adolescent experiences reveal a richness of material, retaining a delicacy of treatment, without saccharine indulgence. With titles such as “A la cuenta de los años en la vuelta de los días (The count of the years in the return of the days), one can see the life cycle returning in on themselves and transcending the original experience that triggered the work. The soft, muted neutral colors (except for the startling silver leaf on “Los primeros días de mi creación”), invite the viewer to enter to a tranquil, inner space in which to examine one’s own life cycles.
It was a tranquil and pleasant interlude, yet hints at mysteries yet unsolved or not revealed.
Nadia Hlibka
Artist
November 2001
Mauricio Toussaint, a self-proclaimed exile from Mexico, has produced a body of work that is both reflective and documentary of this stage of his life. Removing himself from Mexico has given clarity and distance in the work, particularly in the drawings, to examine experiences in his life without intrusive cultural intervention.
Toussaint lovingly takes seemingly simple cultural icons, such as the lotus root, eyes, and the skull associated with the “Day of the Dead” ceremonies and uses them to elucidate various past life experiences.
Writings and language add an additional level of meaning, bringing in references to creation (in general) and the creation myth. The drawings are subtle, executed with humble materials on Amate (hand made indigenous Mexican paper made from bark), building layers of soft color, this process itself being a metaphor for the transition of the thought to the material world. Even the framing reflects this subtle shift as each level becomes denser as it appears.
The pieces are highly personal and self-revelatory, the narrative speaks to all. Toussaint’s scrutiny of childhood and adolescent experiences reveal a richness of material, retaining a delicacy of treatment, without saccharine indulgence. With titles such as “A la cuenta de los años en la vuelta de los días (The count of the years in the return of the days), one can see the life cycle returning in on themselves and transcending the original experience that triggered the work. The soft, muted neutral colors (except for the startling silver leaf on “Los primeros días de mi creación”), invite the viewer to enter to a tranquil, inner space in which to examine one’s own life cycles.
It was a tranquil and pleasant interlude, yet hints at mysteries yet unsolved or not revealed.
Nadia Hlibka
Artist
November 2001
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“Cryptogrammes II”
Mauricio Toussaint creates poignant drawings and paintings that make metaphoric references to emotional states of being. His images support a story or message that he shares with the viewer like a good friend with whom he holds in confidence.
Gently brought into the composition by his intriguing compositions, the viewer is enticed to decipher the meaning of his coded messages. Autobiographical in nature, Toussaint’s two-dimensional works address issues and topics that range from everyday relationships and retold family histories to the most intimate of associations.
By 1997 he applied for permanent residency, now flourishing in a city that has shown appreciation for his art.
Influenced by the psychological studies of Lucien Freud and the stylistic tendencies of such artists as Francesco Clemente, in 2001 Toussaint began to create a large body of drawings initially meant to be sketches for larger paintings. At the urging of a friend from the Indianapolis Museum, he refined his technique to make these works finished statements. The resulting twelve drawings on Amate paper and encaustic paintings board support a story or message referencing life lessons using symbols and line pulled from his Mexican heritage and contemporary sources.
For example, in “Inclinado” the artist indicates a head positioned in the picture plane at a skewed angle by a simple line drawing. The leaning image references a state of confusion and the feeling of “not being down to earth.” Drawing from his architecture background, he further indicates the instability of the image by a dotted line running through the center of the man’s head. The rough edges of the paper are darkened to give the work a weathered quality and a light wash of color forms the letter “I” in a declaration of autobiography. But while the figure may be off center from the world around him, Toussaint confirms the basic goodness of his central character—a light dusting of gold as if in a halo with dotted accents around the man’s head perhaps speaks for the good intentions of all of us. The universal concept of good and bad is addressed here, but brought to a highly personal level that allows the viewer to relate instantly.
Other such works express our inability to be honest with one another and the general difficulty in relating on an interpersonal level with those we love. Visual clues are often given in Spanish—“te amo” and “te extrano” say the words that many cannot say directly to their loved one, but Toussaint fearlessly places such sayings within his compositions in an attempt to “change the rules of the world.” He also challenges perceptions of family lineage and strength in a narrative piece about his grandmother. In this piece, the matriarch supplants the patriarch—from his grandmother’s head sprouts a family tree revealing the strength and prominence of this important woman in his life.
Another series of drawings are based on game boards—the game of life and death, the game of seeing, and the game of words. In such works, Toussaint gets to the heart of our maneuvering through life with the least amount of emotional expenditure, something he takes head-on in an attempt to bring about awareness and change.
Referencing fragmented body parts scientifically rendered and labeled flowers, grid-like architectural frameworks, mathematical references, astronomical charts, bold dot patterns, and other visual delights, Toussaint provides the viewer with much to decipher, yet his engaging style allows for pure visual pleasure as well as the search for the message.
At the core of these compelling works is his interest in how people behave towards one another and how we act in the face of love. Understanding the power of our feelings, Toussaint explains, “everything is related to love—the big love in one’s life.” The “big love” is something we all aspire to have in or lives, or spend the rest of our lives trying to understand when they go wrong. With Toussaint’s visual maps, we have guides to help find the way.
Julie Sasse
Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Tucson Museum of Art.
2003
Mauricio Toussaint creates poignant drawings and paintings that make metaphoric references to emotional states of being. His images support a story or message that he shares with the viewer like a good friend with whom he holds in confidence.
Gently brought into the composition by his intriguing compositions, the viewer is enticed to decipher the meaning of his coded messages. Autobiographical in nature, Toussaint’s two-dimensional works address issues and topics that range from everyday relationships and retold family histories to the most intimate of associations.
By 1997 he applied for permanent residency, now flourishing in a city that has shown appreciation for his art.
Influenced by the psychological studies of Lucien Freud and the stylistic tendencies of such artists as Francesco Clemente, in 2001 Toussaint began to create a large body of drawings initially meant to be sketches for larger paintings. At the urging of a friend from the Indianapolis Museum, he refined his technique to make these works finished statements. The resulting twelve drawings on Amate paper and encaustic paintings board support a story or message referencing life lessons using symbols and line pulled from his Mexican heritage and contemporary sources.
For example, in “Inclinado” the artist indicates a head positioned in the picture plane at a skewed angle by a simple line drawing. The leaning image references a state of confusion and the feeling of “not being down to earth.” Drawing from his architecture background, he further indicates the instability of the image by a dotted line running through the center of the man’s head. The rough edges of the paper are darkened to give the work a weathered quality and a light wash of color forms the letter “I” in a declaration of autobiography. But while the figure may be off center from the world around him, Toussaint confirms the basic goodness of his central character—a light dusting of gold as if in a halo with dotted accents around the man’s head perhaps speaks for the good intentions of all of us. The universal concept of good and bad is addressed here, but brought to a highly personal level that allows the viewer to relate instantly.
Other such works express our inability to be honest with one another and the general difficulty in relating on an interpersonal level with those we love. Visual clues are often given in Spanish—“te amo” and “te extrano” say the words that many cannot say directly to their loved one, but Toussaint fearlessly places such sayings within his compositions in an attempt to “change the rules of the world.” He also challenges perceptions of family lineage and strength in a narrative piece about his grandmother. In this piece, the matriarch supplants the patriarch—from his grandmother’s head sprouts a family tree revealing the strength and prominence of this important woman in his life.
Another series of drawings are based on game boards—the game of life and death, the game of seeing, and the game of words. In such works, Toussaint gets to the heart of our maneuvering through life with the least amount of emotional expenditure, something he takes head-on in an attempt to bring about awareness and change.
Referencing fragmented body parts scientifically rendered and labeled flowers, grid-like architectural frameworks, mathematical references, astronomical charts, bold dot patterns, and other visual delights, Toussaint provides the viewer with much to decipher, yet his engaging style allows for pure visual pleasure as well as the search for the message.
At the core of these compelling works is his interest in how people behave towards one another and how we act in the face of love. Understanding the power of our feelings, Toussaint explains, “everything is related to love—the big love in one’s life.” The “big love” is something we all aspire to have in or lives, or spend the rest of our lives trying to understand when they go wrong. With Toussaint’s visual maps, we have guides to help find the way.
Julie Sasse
Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Tucson Museum of Art.
2003