0:00:11.553,0:00:26.352 [strumming music] 0:00:43.221,0:00:45.604 [Dog barking] 0:00:49.515,0:00:52.219 [Damian Ortega] I like the objects[br]when they have experience, 0:00:52.836,0:00:54.025 history. 0:00:58.175,0:01:01.052 My work is a form of[br]appropriation. 0:01:01.384,0:01:03.400 Appropriation is a political[br]statement 0:01:03.400,0:01:07.210 because it gives me the chance[br]to transform and 0:01:07.210,0:01:08.510 recontextualize 0:01:08.510,0:01:12.497 everyday objects we take for[br]granted. 0:01:17.023,0:01:20.630 It's just, uh, the way of[br]working in Mexico, 0:01:20.630,0:01:25.895 the way of found materials in[br]the everyday life. 0:01:33.100,0:01:35.659 "Cosmologia Doméstica" is a[br]crazy 0:01:35.659,0:01:40.759 or schizophrenic carousel, uh,[br]kind of cosmos, 0:01:40.759,0:01:43.568 more like a homemade solar[br]system. 0:01:44.872,0:01:47.462 It was my own chairs, my own[br]table. 0:01:49.500,0:01:53.880 I planned it, but never with[br]the real context of the 0:01:53.880,0:01:54.880 weather, 0:01:55.757,0:01:58.890 and then we have a lot of[br]problems after a few days 0:01:58.890,0:02:02.869 because the leather strings[br]grows and expanded 0:02:02.869,0:02:04.600 with rainy weather... 0:02:06.117,0:02:08.357 [Drill whirring] 0:02:08.357,0:02:11.920 and we decide to bring the[br]piece again to the studio 0:02:11.920,0:02:14.611 to repair and to adjust[br]everything. 0:02:17.905,0:02:20.000 — With inertia they begin to... 0:02:20.261,0:02:22.301 — Perhaps they are moving, aren't they? 0:02:23.130,0:02:24.504 Right? 0:02:25.560,0:02:28.080 I think[br]one of the most exciting 0:02:28.080,0:02:29.080 moments 0:02:29.080,0:02:31.870 during the construction of an[br]art work 0:02:31.870,0:02:33.937 is to take some risks. 0:02:36.449,0:02:39.450 The most important thing is[br]the, um the failure 0:02:39.450,0:02:42.172 because you learn a lot of[br]things. 0:02:45.158,0:02:48.050 I always had the idea to be an[br]artist 0:02:48.050,0:02:50.019 since being very young. 0:02:50.019,0:02:54.269 It's funny because my--my[br]brother likes a lot the 0:02:54.269,0:02:58.959 to do experiments and to take[br]apart kitchen appliances 0:02:58.959,0:03:02.067 to see how they work, 0:03:02.707,0:03:07.039 and I was watching him carefully. Yeah. 0:03:10.120,0:03:13.500 We grow up like this always[br]with curiosity 0:03:13.500,0:03:17.340 because our parents was[br]permissive with us 0:03:17.340,0:03:21.860 and we had the chance toto[br]play. 0:03:21.860,0:03:25.607 [sawing] 0:03:25.607,0:03:27.505 — It's your turn. 0:03:30.918,0:03:31.466 [Damian Ortega] It's very[br]exciting. 0:03:32.295,0:03:35.806 It's, uh, really a revelation,[br]what is happening inside. 0:03:37.394,0:03:38.420 — Ah, esta. 0:03:39.120,0:03:40.663 — OK. Entonces. 0:03:41.545,0:03:43.457 — Hah. OK. 0:03:43.457,0:03:44.420 Esta. 0:03:45.960,0:03:49.370 I name this works "Geodes" 0:03:49.370,0:03:52.120 like a geological term of the[br]stones. 0:03:53.094,0:03:56.536 In this one, we use, uh,[br]cardboard boxes 0:03:56.536,0:03:58.624 and--and newspaper... 0:04:03.553,0:04:06.450 and [br]we found this paper they 0:04:06.450,0:04:07.709 find in the streets, 0:04:07.709,0:04:10.616 especially during the Day of[br]the Dead, 0:04:10.972,0:04:13.220 and I think it's really[br]beautiful, 0:04:14.216,0:04:17.961 and I decide to include them[br]into the pieces. 0:04:19.620,0:04:21.180 You can see the skull, 0:04:21.180,0:04:25.020 the eye, the nose, and the[br]mouth. 0:04:26.797,0:04:28.970 It's really interesting, the[br]dialogue 0:04:28.970,0:04:30.873 with the with the street. 0:04:35.873,0:04:39.005 [Door lock clicking] 0:04:40.380,0:04:48.979 [Drum and trumpet playing] 0:04:53.174,0:04:54.800 [Damian Ortega] I was in[br]high school, 0:04:54.800,0:04:57.380 and I had really bad relation[br]with my professors. 0:04:58.091,0:05:01.100 I took one day off, and I went[br]to visit 0:05:01.100,0:05:03.974 the university to see how it[br]works, 0:05:05.562,0:05:08.610 and I get really shocked[br]because I thought it was 0:05:08.610,0:05:09.420 boring. 0:05:09.420,0:05:10.207 — Hola. ¿Que tal? 0:05:10.207,0:05:11.207 — Hola. 0:05:11.709,0:05:14.839 I decide I[br]create my own, um, 0:05:14.839,0:05:17.809 self-organized, uh,[br]university... 0:05:21.103,0:05:24.630 and I found a painter. 0:05:24.630,0:05:28.530 His name is Gabriel Orozco,[br]and we meet every Friday 0:05:28.530,0:05:31.600 in a very informal, absolutely[br]nonacademic 0:05:31.600,0:05:34.625 but self-made school... 0:05:36.639,0:05:39.759 like a Renaissance studio with[br]a mentor 0:05:39.759,0:05:41.479 who shares his knowledge... 0:05:43.683,0:05:45.569 but at the same time, it's a[br]party 0:05:45.569,0:05:48.290 where you can find your[br]friends and have a beer and 0:05:48.290,0:05:49.484 paint. 0:05:51.831,0:05:54.406 We start to move little by[br]little 0:05:54.406,0:05:58.454 to understand the painting[br]more as an object, 0:05:58.454,0:05:59.889 as a sculpture. 0:06:02.402,0:06:06.101 Then we start to use everyday[br]objects, 0:06:06.931,0:06:11.729 and you can see this change[br]from representation 0:06:11.729,0:06:13.552 to presentation... 0:06:16.301,0:06:20.199 because, uh, if you, uh, don't[br]use anymore, 0:06:20.199,0:06:24.872 um, oil painting and you start[br]to--to use tortillas, 0:06:25.844,0:06:29.110 the town, the guy who works in[br]the factory, 0:06:30.153,0:06:32.917 the culture is involved in the[br]piece. 0:06:41.090,0:06:42.419 People said, "What are you[br]doing? 0:06:42.419,0:06:43.669 "You are very good to paint." 0:06:43.669,0:06:47.699 "You are very good to draw,[br]and what is this [beep]" 0:06:47.699,0:06:49.405 "What you are doing?" [laughs] 0:06:49.905,0:06:52.277 — Can we try it where it gets some light 0:06:52.277,0:06:54.246 to see if it casts a shadow. 0:06:57.913,0:06:58.565 — Si. 0:06:58.565,0:07:01.411 — Maybe if we see it from this side it will look better 0:07:01.411,0:07:04.185 like a shadow there. 0:07:07.520,0:07:10.337 All my[br]friends from the workshops, 0:07:10.337,0:07:14.617 we are doing this show, first[br]time all together. 0:07:18.539,0:07:21.737 — Towards the outside, no? To lighten. 0:07:22.591,0:07:24.759 — Right. Poquito mas. OK. 0:07:25.280,0:07:27.349 [Damian Ortega] I love when a new work, a new piece 0:07:27.349,0:07:29.627 needs to create their own[br]tools. 0:07:32.139,0:07:35.379 The piece which I'm doing is a[br]big cube 0:07:35.379,0:07:39.199 made with Styrofoam, and I am[br]carving 0:07:39.199,0:07:45.793 a big hole inside to create[br]your own living space. 0:07:47.623,0:07:54.264 [Scraping] 0:07:57.060,0:08:00.000 The ideas comes from different[br]places. 0:08:00.743,0:08:03.440 Sometimes reading, sometimes[br]materials 0:08:03.440,0:08:05.449 give some ideas. 0:08:07.629,0:08:10.220 Well, I found a beautiful book[br]years ago, 0:08:10.220,0:08:11.849 "Architecture Without[br]Architects," 0:08:12.489,0:08:16.039 and, uh, I saw beautiful[br]pictures of, um, 0:08:16.039,0:08:20.765 troglodyte, uh, house--houses[br]which are a cave. 0:08:22.400,0:08:24.010 They start to carve from[br]inside, 0:08:25.000,0:08:26.789 which is a completely[br]different approach than 0:08:26.789,0:08:28.091 architecture, 0:08:28.992,0:08:33.593 and you start to understand[br]the space from inside. 0:08:39.210,0:08:43.789 I think it's interesting just[br]to follow my own curiosity. 0:08:47.462,0:08:51.888 It's important, this dialogue[br]between ¿como se dice? uh, 0:08:52.812,0:08:56.325 intuition and rationality 0:08:56.847,0:09:00.079 to--to produce, uh, the click or[br]the twist. 0:09:00.363,0:09:04.048 [Speaking Spanish] 0:09:06.607,0:09:08.093 I love tools. 0:09:08.591,0:09:11.880 The tool is a kind of hand, an[br]extension of your hand, 0:09:11.880,0:09:14.180 and you can touch, and you can[br]transform. 0:09:14.180,0:09:16.357 You can modify, 0:09:17.542,0:09:20.070 and then the tools are this[br]extension 0:09:20.070,0:09:21.910 of your own knowledge. 0:09:23.640,0:09:24.898 In Mexico, we say… 0:09:24.898,0:09:28.011 The tool makes the teacher. 0:09:28.011,0:09:30.278 [synth music] 0:09:30.278,0:09:33.340 I went to Berlin, and one of[br]my pleasures 0:09:33.340,0:09:36.914 was to visit the flea market[br]every Sunday, 0:09:37.199,0:09:41.280 and I found beautiful tools[br]and amazing tools, 0:09:41.280,0:09:44.268 different than the ones we[br]use in Mexico. 0:09:47.183,0:09:51.060 I start to collect them, and[br]when I had many, 0:09:51.060,0:09:56.263 I start to play with idea to[br]to put all around me, 0:09:56.690,0:09:58.944 to hold all of them. 0:09:58.944,0:10:04.399 ♪ ♪ 0:10:07.580,0:10:12.399 The idea, for me, was to[br]permit the audience 0:10:12.399,0:10:16.670 to come inside of the piece[br]and feel 0:10:16.670,0:10:19.329 how many possibilities 0:10:19.329,0:10:23.940 and how we see everything[br]through tools, 0:10:23.940,0:10:28.027 through instruments to[br]transform everything. 0:10:40.452,0:10:45.552 [Speaking Spanish] 0:10:47.519,0:10:48.600 I found a book 0:10:48.600,0:10:50.899 to--to repair your own car, 0:10:50.899,0:10:53.510 and it was some beautiful,[br]exploded views 0:10:53.510,0:10:56.781 or the car and the engine, the[br]transmission. 0:11:01.800,0:11:04.910 I decide to use the Beetle[br]because it was my own car. 0:11:04.910,0:11:07.677 It was part of my own family. 0:11:09.170,0:11:13.191 Second is because it was the[br]most popular car in Mexico City, 0:11:14.470,0:11:16.360 and then, uh, I start to do 0:11:16.360,0:11:19.491 these kind of exploded[br]installations. 0:11:26.672,0:11:31.690 You can find a universe in[br]every single object. 0:11:32.685,0:11:37.672 It's amazing how objects have[br]this life and this energy. 0:11:43.075,0:11:46.602 I don't know exactly how comes[br]the idea to do a trilogy. 0:11:48.119,0:11:50.935 The second piece is "Moby Dick." 0:11:52.310,0:11:55.000 I have my white Beetle car, 0:11:55.768,0:11:57.540 and I thought it's a kind of[br]whale, 0:11:58.204,0:12:00.339 and you need to control it,[br]and you need 0:12:00.339,0:12:02.899 to move it and to push it. 0:12:05.482,0:12:09.450 It's a kind of obsession, no,[br]how Captain Ahab 0:12:09.450,0:12:13.260 becomes completely engaged[br]with the power of that whale, 0:12:13.260,0:12:15.477 and he tried to control, 0:12:16.709,0:12:19.099 and my performance was a[br]caricature 0:12:19.099,0:12:22.665 of this domestic mythology. 0:12:25.841,0:12:32.923 [distant drum music] 0:12:44.084,0:12:46.670 The third piece is I had the[br]idea to create 0:12:46.670,0:12:53.190 this mythology of this[br]character who was a car as a hero. 0:12:53.190,0:12:57.400 To have a mythological tour,[br]going back to the same place 0:12:57.400,0:13:00.380 where the car was born in Puebla 0:13:00.380,0:13:02.010 in the factory of Volkswagen 0:13:03.313,0:13:06.701 and going exactly to the same[br]place to die... 0:13:11.180,0:13:12.699 and it was a sad moment, 0:13:12.699,0:13:15.108 like everyone was like in a[br]funeral, 0:13:15.108,0:13:17.429 but it was a beautiful[br]experience. 0:13:18.519,0:13:25.360 [Barrel organ playing] 0:13:26.047,0:13:28.166 [Dog barking] 0:13:28.166,0:13:29.361 [Speaks Spanish] 0:13:29.361,0:13:30.029 OK. 0:13:31.238,0:13:32.404 Bueno. 0:13:33.375,0:13:40.375 — One by one, make sure there are no mistakes. 0:13:42.034,0:13:42.979 Bien. 0:13:43.287,0:13:44.742 Es perfecto. 0:13:45.738,0:13:48.889 Actually I get[br]very obsessed with order. 0:13:48.889,0:13:53.089 I try to classify the pieces[br]and the objects 0:13:53.089,0:13:55.497 to make comprehensible. 0:13:58.829,0:14:01.759 Of course,[br]it's nicer than the dark side, 0:14:01.759,0:14:03.370 no, what you saw. 0:14:03.370,0:14:06.896 Order is boring, and disorder[br]is exciting... 0:14:10.593,0:14:13.660 but I like this dialogue[br]between both. 0:14:13.660,0:14:17.105 I think it's also part of the[br]language of my works. 0:14:19.167,0:14:21.570 If you ask me to--to put in the[br]balance 0:14:21.570,0:14:25.800 what is more important, the[br]object or the idea, 0:14:25.800,0:14:28.589 I think the important is the[br]combustion, 0:14:28.589,0:14:32.649 the sparks between both when[br]they create a new experience 0:14:34.426,0:14:37.349 because, uh, maybe the object[br]itself is not important, 0:14:37.349,0:14:39.290 but if you put in a different context, 0:14:39.290,0:14:42.639 there's, um, the chance to[br]understand life 0:14:42.639,0:14:43.639 in a different way. 0:14:48.782,0:14:54.612 [soft electronic music]