This work is the result of the experimental process towards starting from the figurative element of an African mask.

On his frequent visits to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the artist was enthralled by the museum’s collection of masks. From that moment onwards, he has used masks as the starting point for his sculptural discourse on many occasions.

Rodriguez Caballero’s way of arriving at abstraction is an analytical and complex one, based on a reduction and stylisation of the figurative element, in this case the mask. It also includes a new feature that marks a difference between this piece and other previous works: the addition of lepidoptera (winged) forms, which generate protruding volumes.

The piece consists of two brass parts—one of which is enamelled—forming folds that resonate with Japanese origami, a recurrent source of inspiration for this artist throughout his career. The work in hand, together with 25.marzo.2015 (also in the BBVA Collection), are his only fractioned pieces, as the artist generally creates his sculptures as one indivisible unit.

The finish is truly astonishing, confronting two textures that produce a both tactile and visual impression: the dark and shiny enamelled part contrasts with the golden and polished brass, thus transforming light into matter.