Hyper baroque

"Clearly, baroque is fantastic," Gregg Lambert said. He did not fully understand this expression before the project "Thinking Baroque" took place. We can understand and interpret the baroque in two general ways: rationally, as a historical period, and consider its formal aspects: the chronological margins are defined and the masters are recognized, the principles of composition and characteristic elements are described and preserved with poetized society and spirit of that time. Alternatively, we can feel the Baroque as a transitional phenomenon, which can occur at any time, and which brings all matters to its maximum: the skill, the science, the emotion, the illusion, the violence. As one of the participating artists, Miguel Rodrigues, notably remarked, we are actually approaching a hyper baroque era; we can witness it, it is in the abundance of information, possibilities and technologies, in the full blossom and full acceptance of any ugliness and of any beauty. His installation, specifically made for "Thinking Baroque", is an assemblage of plumbing tubes and bent plastic: it shines with gold, it attracts with the softness of rich red velvet. Isn’t this a sublime of modernity?

This is an excerpt from the text of the catalog by:

Madina Zingashina, curator of the project ART-MAP Braga 2017