In 2001, attracted by his native neighborhood, Abraham Cruzvillegas began to photograph it and document its history in different ways. Following this idea, in 2007 he started Autoconstrucción, a project that he has developed, with numerous variations and twists of the screw since then.
As in the case of the Ajusco neighborhood, where he grew up, Autoconstrucción (Self-Construction) by Cruzvillegas refers to a process that occurs in the illegal settlements of the suburbs of the megalopolis, when a community takes a piece of land and begins to inhabit it little by little, with the materials, tools, and possibilities that it has at hand. Rather than seeking to illustrate it or exhibit it from a documentary angle, the artist appropriated auto-construction strategies as a work methodology, which gives his work an almost bricolage nature. For this reason, Cruzvillegas generally works with materials from each place he visits, thus responding to the peculiarities and specificities of each setting.
This sculptural practice allows for working with waste, recycled, and second-hand materials, and even with some randomly-found objects on the streets. These can range from stones, wood, and cardboard to more complex objects, loaded with historical and symbolic value. At the same time, Autoconstrucción works as an allegory of identity, because as the artist himself affirms, as in autoconstrucción, “one is defining and constructing one's identity, changing it on a daily basis (...) Identity is constantly changing, like the houses that never are finished in autoconstrucción.”
Autoconstrucción: Departamento de Defensa is an early piece, emblematic of all these elements. In it, a series of materials originating from the context of construction arranged one on top of the other make up a precariously balanced sculpture. The broken bottles at the top allude to defense mechanisms that are used in an improvised manner on the walls of the houses, to prevent people from illegally entering a property - an element from which this work takes its playful and ironic title.
With this type of work, Cruzvillegas proposes an object-value experience always different from the recontextualized object, which alludes to current dynamics of society. His works, however, are not exclusive to the Mexican sphere, and from a much broader perspective refer to economic, social, and political aspects of contemporary society on a global level.
EKA, June 2020
https://artreview.com/features/jan_feb_2013_feature_abraham_cruzvillegas/
https://luvina.com.mx/AJUSTES/descargas/portada/81/Luvina_81_.pd
In 2001, attracted by his native neighborhood, Abraham Cruzvillegas began to photograph it and document its history in different ways. Following this idea, in 2007 he started Autoconstrucción, a project that he has developed, with numerous variations and twists of the screw since then.
