Anything Can Be Art

Before Damián Ortega (dah-mee- AHN or-TEH-gah) became a world-renowned artist, he drew cartoons about politics for newspapers and magazines in Mexico City, his hometown. He greatly admired famous muralists like Diego Rivera and dreamed of becoming a fine artist too.

Ortega, who was born in 1967, never attended a formal art school. Instead, he studied with Mexican artist Gabriel Orozco. During the 1980s and ’90s, Orozco taught a workshop about making art in new and unexpected ways, a mindset that Ortega embraced early in his career and continues to employ today.

Artist Damián Ortega (dah-mee-AHN or-TEH-gah) is from Mexico City. At first, he drew cartoons. He admired muralists like Diego Rivera and wanted to be one too.

Ortega was born in 1967. He studied with Mexican artist  Gabriel Orozco. In the 1980s and ’90s, Orozco taught about making art in unexpected ways. Ortega has embraced this idea in his work.

Ortega often uses found materials—everyday items—to make art. The materials “can be ephemeral, like tortillas, or solid, like concrete,” he says. In his 1998 Módulo de Construcción de Tortillas, which translates to Tortilla construction module, above, Ortega uses crispy tortillas to create a delicate sculpture. The shape evokes a modern apartment building. The tortilla has been part of a typical diet in Mexico for centuries. What questions might Ortega be asking by using this common food as a building block?

Ortega uses found materials, or everyday items. These can be materials that last, like concrete, or ones that don’t—like tortillas. The 1998 work above is called Módulo de Construcción de Tortillas, which means “Tortilla construction module.” He uses tortillas to create the sculpture. The food has been popular in Mexico for years. What might Ortega suggest by using it in his art?

For Ortega’s 2007 Controller of the Universe, above, the artist suspends old, rusty tools from above. In the first image, the arrangement seems random. “The idea is that the work seen from afar is an explosion, a moment in the Big Bang,” Ortega says. But if you observe the work from another angle, as in the bottom image, “you realize that there is a central corridor, which you can walk through.”

To Ortega, tools are symbols of control. They allow us to shape the world around us. As viewers walk through the sculpture, the artist explains, they “become the center of the explosion.”

Ortega’s 2007 work Controller of the Universe is shown aboe. He suspends old, rusty tools from above. In the top image, the arrangement seems random. “The idea is that the work seen from afar is an explosion,” says Ortega. That changes if you look from the side, as shown in the bottom image. “You realize that there is a central corridor, which you can walk through,” the artist explains.

To Ortega, tools help us shape our world. Viewers feel this as they walk through the sculpture. They “become the center of the explosion,” he says.

Ortega frequently invites people to see ordinary objects—such as the Volkswagen (VW) Beetle—in a new light. The car is commonplace in Mexico. Knowing that it would be familiar to and have meaning for Mexican viewers, the artist has used it more than once in his work.

Ortega’s Cosmic Thing, above, completed in 2002, is one of his most celebrated works. To produce this large-scale installation, he took apart an old VW Beetle and then carefully suspended each part from the ceiling. Depending on how you interpret it, the arrangement looks like the car is bursting apart or assembling itself in midair.

Ortega wants people to see ordinary objects, like the Volkswagen Beetle, in a new way. Ortega knows this car is important in Mexico and has used it many times in his art.

Ortega completed Cosmic Thing, above, in 2002. The large-scale installation is one of his best-known works. To create it, he took apart an old Beetle and suspended each part from the ceiling. It looks like the car is bursting apart or coming together.

Two years later, Ortega used a VW Beetle again, this time in a performance art piece, above. Performance art is art made through a series of actions. In an underground parking lot, the artist covered the car’s wheels with grease and attached a rope to the back bumper. Then as the car spun its wheels, driving forward, Ortega attempted to “tame” the vehicle by pulling the rope from behind as a band played in the background. The title of the 2004 work, Moby Dick, suggests that the white car, like the whale in the novel of the same title, is alive. During the performance, the man and the machine struggled for control.

What themes do you see in the ideas Ortega explores? Are there patterns in the materials he chooses?

Two years later, Ortega used a Beetle for a work of performance art, which is art made through a series of actions. The performance is shown above.

Ortega brought the car to a parking lot. He covered the wheels with grease and tied a rope to the back. As the wheels spun, Ortega tried to “tame” it by pulling the rope.

The title of the 2004 work is Moby Dick. It refers to a novel where a ship captain struggles to catch a white whale. The title suggests that the white car is alive. During the performance, the man and the car struggled for control.

What themes do you see in Ortega’s art?