Guillermo Kuitca (b. 1961)
Guillermo Kuitca (b. 1961)

L'Enfance du Christ

Details
Guillermo Kuitca (b. 1961)
L'Enfance du Christ
acrylic on canvas
80 x 126in. (203 x 230cm.)
Painted in 1990
Provenance
Private collection, Mexico City
Literature
E. Lipschutz-Villa, Guillermo Kuitca-burning beds, Contemporary Art Foundation Amsterdam, Amsterdam, 1994, p. 41, n.n. (illustrated in color)
Exhibited
Columbus, Wexner Center for the Arts, Guillermo Kuitca, Burning Beds: A Survey 1982-1994, 1994, p. 41, n.n. (illustrated in color). This exhibition later travelled to Miami, Center for the Fine Arts; London, Whitechapel Art Gallery; Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv Museum of Art.

Lot Essay

Keeping in mind that Guillermo Kuitca's background is Jewish, it is therefore interesting to ponder his inspiration for this painting. We can guess that he was inspired by Hector Berlioz' oratorio L'Enfance du Christ. Kuitca's iconography is only teasingly Catholic when it does refer to the Christian faith. The association is made in a free and refreshing manner; the weight of their significance and symbolism are somehow lightened by the elements commonly used by the artist such as the plan and the thorns.

The trinity of the rented middle class floor plans can be intterpreted as an analogy with the story of the trinity that we know. Actually, if Jesus were to live in our times his life could take place in one of these austere interiors. The wooden floor could be associated with Joseph's work, carpentry.

In a circuitous manner Kuitca approaches Christianity, subtly referring to the iconography commonly known to be associated with the story of Christ.

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