Mercedes Cruz Canonica (XX) - Inferno

Mercedes Canonica Cruz Duran

Inferno

Oil on canvas, 1998

Dimensions: 60 × 80 cm

Important work by Mercedes Canonica Cruz Duran, painter of Dominican origin, active artistically since the nineties and present in the exhibition scene between Italy and Switzerland.

Inferno is a work realized in 1998, characterized by a strongly expressive figurative language, symbolic and material. The composition features several stylized female figures, immersed in a dimension suspended between reality, nature and theatrical representation.

At the center of the canvas develops a large arboreal element, dark and imposing, which runs vertically through the composition and seems to divide and at the same time connect the different figures. The female bodies, represented through elongated shapes and essential lines, emerge from the surrounding painterly material, creating a visually powerful overall effect.

In the upper part of the work there is a figure with an enigmatic face, almost a theatrical mask, which introduces a symbolic and surreal dimension into the scene. The presence of this face, contrasting with the female figures and the central arboreal element, gives the composition a narrative and mysterious character.

Particularly significant is the color palette, dominated by ochre, brown, red and orange tones. In the lower part of the canvas the warm, fiery colors acquire a particular intensity, creating a dramatic atmosphere that recalls the title of the work, Inferno.

The painting appears deliberately free and tactile, with layered surfaces, color contrasts and graphic signs that contribute to the depth of the composition. The work does not propose a single narrative, but leaves room for different possibilities of interpretation, between human dimension, nature, metamorphosis and symbolism.

Characteristics of the work

Artist: Mercedes Canonica Cruz Duran
Title: Inferno
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 60 × 80 cm
Year: 1998
Style: Contemporary figurative, expressive and tactile
Frame: important wooden frame
Documentation: catalogs, certificates, recognitions and documentation relating to the artist's path available

Documentation and artist’s path

The work is accompanied by an important corpus of historical documentation relating to the artist, including catalogs, publications, certificates and recognitions matured throughout her exhibition activity.

Among the available documents are references to participation in international exhibitions and surveys in Italy, Switzerland and the United States, including:

- International Artexpo New York 2004;
- Expo' Art-Nice 2005, French Riviera;
- Trofeo Miramare 2005;
- contemporary art surveys and Euro Art-Expo events;
- Venice Biennale – Rialto, indicated in the documentation as International Award;
- recognitions and critics’ prizes;
- 1st Critics Prize – Gran Galà dell'Arte, Porto Venere;
- ranking 2nd in the survey “Estate e colori”;
- further national and international prizes and recognitions.

Also particularly significant is the artist’s presence in a period art publication, in which she is presented as a painter and an appraisal of her works is reported to be between €1,000 and €5,000.

The available biographical documentation also testifies to a long artistic activity, with participation in international competitions, solo and group shows and the presence of her works within catalogs and art publications.

Note for collectors

Inferno represents a work of particular interest for its strong symbolic and expressive component, combined with an immediately recognizable composition and an intense color palette.

Created in 1998, the canvas belongs to an early phase of the artist's career and predates chronologically several of the participating exhibitions and recognitions documented in Mercedes Canonica Cruz Duran's subsequent exhibition history.

The title Inferno offers a possible key to understanding the dramatic atmosphere of the composition, dominated by fire colors, the female figures and the imposing central arboreal element. The work nevertheless retains a strong interpretive openness, leaving the viewer the possibility of grasping meanings related to nature, the human condition, metamorphosis and the symbolic dimension.

A painting of notable visual presence, suitable for both a private collection and a representative setting, where the chromatic strength and the theatrical character of the composition can take on a central role.

The work's interest is further enhanced by the documentation relating to the artist's career, which accompanies the painting and allows placing its production within her artistic activity.

Work accompanied by documentation relating to the artist's career.

Provenance: private collection. The work was received directly from the current owner by the artist Mercedes Canonica Cruz Duran. Upon request by the auction house or the buyer, the current owner is able to obtain from the artist a written statement confirming the authenticity of the work and its provenance as a personal gift.