01 Jan Pool & Marianela
Barbie: The Plastic Religion
Extended to January 26th!
You have to have guts to mount an exhibition like the ones that the Argentine artists Pool & Marianela (Marianela Perelli and Emiliano Paolini) exhibit these days across the globe. The Plastic Religion plays with religious iconography, with special emphasis on the Christian religion, disguising the popular Barbie and her partner Ken as virgins, saints and Christs. Past shows have faced staunch criticism and controversy from right-wing factions who have applied their own agendas onto the artwork, but simultaneously this work has found acceptance from Pope Francis (who owns one of the couple’s loose Barbie figures), Mattel (the makers of Barbie), and the Palais du Louvre (which displayed four of Pool y Marianela’s boxed Barbie & Ken dolls in their museum of decorative arts). This current presentation at Gallery 30 South features some of the same striking pieces that were featured at the Louvre, and they’ve produced new unique versions of pieces both owned and beloved by the Pope.
“More than bravery is taking on the commitment,” says Pool with energy. “We live in an increasingly ugly world where the extreme right threatens our freedoms all the time with artists frequently becoming unwitting collaborators.”
Pool is resounding when it comes to talking about this. In his opinion, art of today that does not say anything (specifically that which is limited to pretty pictures with the sole purpose of selling), is a treacherous, empty art that only serves to bolster fascism.
Explains the Argentine artist, “We, Pool and Marianela, do not conceive art if it does not have rebellion. The enemy of good art is the artist who makes nice things in support of vapidness. That is unforgivable. They are occupying space in the zeitgeist that should go to someone who wants to shout a real message into the ether. We cry out by testing the limits of the nexus between religious mentality and consumerism.”
But criticism is in the eye of the beholder and the duo count The Holy See among the owners of their work. “This exhibition, like all our work, focuses on the boundary between satire and homage,” says Pool, who speaks on behalf of both. “We move in duality; we are neither good nor evil.”
We hope to soon be able to confirm the attendance of both artists at the Opening Reception on Sunday, December 7th, from 3-6PM.
Pricing and detailed sizing is below.
Contact gallery director Matt Kennedy for availability and purchase info:
(323)547-3227 or info@gallery30south.com
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie Nativity Playset (Pesebre)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
Includes seven figures and a manger
24 x 16 x 12.25 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Ken: Cristo de los Remedios
(Christ of Remedies)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
18.5 x 10.75 x 3.5 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Santa Veronica
(St. Veronica of the Veil)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
13.5 x 5.5 x 4.25 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Ken: Cristo Alphonse de Liguori
(The Wounds of Jesus)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
19 x 10.5 x 4 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Ken: San Valentin (St. Valentine)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
13.5 x 6.75 x 4.25 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Ken: San Patricio (St. Patrick)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
13.5 x 5.5 x 4.25 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Ken: Cristo Rey (Christ the King)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
14.75 x 5.5 x 4.25 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Buddha Ken
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
7 x 5.5 x 6 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Virgen de Guadalupe
(Our Lady of Guadalupe)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
14.25 x 7.5 x 4.75 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Virgen de Loreto
(Our Lady of Loreto, Mother of Mercy)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
15 x 8 x 3.5 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Oxum
(Our Lady of Aparecida)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
13 x 7.25 x 6 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Virgen de la Pasion
(Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
14.75 x 7.5 x 5 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Virgen de la Rosa Mistica
(Holy Mother of the Hidden Rose)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
13.75 x 4.75 x 4 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Virgen de las Maravillas
(Our Lady of Wonders)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
13.75 x 7.75 x 5 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Virgen de la Soledad
(Our Lady of Solitude)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
16.5 x 7 x 4.75 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Virgen del Pilar
(Our Lady of the Pillar)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
19.5 x 6.25 x 4.75 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Our Lady of Lourdes
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
13.75 x 4.75 x 6 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Virgen del Carmen
(Our Lady of Mount Carmel)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
14 x 5.5 x 4.5 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Virgen de Lujan
(Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
17.5 x 10.5 x 4 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Juana de Arco
(St. Joan of Arc)
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
15 x 5.5 x 4.5 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Baphomet
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
13 x 7.5 x 5 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie: Kali
Plastic, MDF, acrylic in window box
13 x 7 x 6 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Barbie Byzantine Icon:
Sacred Heart of Dolce & Gabbana
Gold leaf, acrylic, oil on wood
20 x 16 in.
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Pool & Marianela
Ken Byzantine Icon:
Sacred Heart of Versace
Gold leaf, acrylic, oil on wood
20 x 16 in.
“We try to make people think, to put their heads to work so that each time there is less authoritarianism and less preconception of thought–which is what allows dictators to operate unopposed. Always, for them, it will be more difficult to deceive when the public is thinking clearly.”
The couple of Argentine artists does not consider, however, that Barbie is an icon of consumerism. For them Barbie is more the representation of canonical beauty and an icon of feminism, “We say hembrismo“, qualifies Pool, since it represents a woman who does what she wants, as she wants and when she wants. So much so that her partner, Ken, is simply an accessory.
That’s why they chose these two pop icons. “We had been incorporating the most popular figures into our work, and Barbie was the number one pop culture doll. This was in tandem with connecting the rite of play with the first things imposed on us: religion through baptism. Once we mixed the two we knew we had a project with broad, international appeal. From this was born our oeuvre, which gets a bit of updating in this evolving but superplastic era.”
Click here for Pool & Marianela’s CV
A NOTE ABOUT THE PACKAGING:
While each hand-made sculpture is produced to look like new, production-line figure, the packaging is made to look like a toy that has been unboxed and played with many times, which gives the window-boxes a slightly worn look. The artists feel that dents, dinged corners, and other rudimentary signs of imperfection enhance the concept that these are beloved toys that have given much joy.
In that regard, the boxes are included as a free bonus, with prices reflecting only the cost of the figures.
For press or purchase inquiries contact:
Matt Kennedy
Gallery Director
(323)547-3227
info@gallery30south.com