Donjo León: Organic Treasures

February 2021

Text by Luz Hitters

During the 16th and 17th Centuries, as the World faced an increased process of globalisation, many wealthy and cultured individuals like priests and scholars explored a new fascination: collecting objects that would portray the new conquers of an imperialistic era. Initially, this trend took form in the development of Cabinets of Curiosities or Wunderkammer, a room that aimed to contain the ‘entire world.’ The objective of such curated spaces was to exhibit the ‘most rare’ and ‘wondrous’ objects as evidence of power, providing entertainment for guests. The rooms acted as a means of impressing the audience, exhibiting the cultural variety of newly-discovered places in a world that suddenly grew bigger. The display of these objects was closely tied to the collector’s perspective, who assorted the ‘strange’ closely tied to Imperialistic discourses of the era. As such, they served as a conquering and voyeuristic gaze. Cabinets of Curiosities embodied a paradoxical combination: the need to organise and box the unknown, while also experiencing the fascination of the uncategorisable.

My introduction to the concept of Cabinets of Curiosities happens to be relevant here since the first time I visited Donjo León’s (Buenos Aires, 1982) studio I had the feeling of entering into a contemporary version of them: embodying the values of our times. His workplace hosts a collection of cupboards and glass boxes of all sizes, each containing a texture or organism that leaves you in awe. Processes of distillation, dropping, putrefaction, and growth occur in each of them—a veneration of the rawness in life.

León’s work evokes in one a childlike marvel, as he presents an assemblage of treasures that busy people don’t stop to notice. He features the sublime that lies in the unseen processes of nature. His work is not a voyeuristic search for the different, but a means to render the gracefulness of everyday cycles visible. For instance, he draws attention to the development of mould, the creation of a bacterial microcosm or the fossilisation of a tree branch. Thus, the artist exposes the beauty of death, rot and decay. Enacting a youngster’s hobby of experimenting with the treasures from his backyard, Donjo collects these snippets of nature and puts them on a pedestal.

His work is also interactive, opposing the concept of inaccessibility and severity that highly characterised early Cabinets of Curiosity. His pieces act as an invitation to our most ludic aspects, where we are encouraged to engage with the works, fascinated by the endless possibilities nature provides. Such is the case with his installation Del Cielo Cae, Atraviesa Cuerpos y Se Convierte en Música (From the Sky Falls, Crosses Bodies and Becomes Music, 2016), where viewers play the water drums by manipulating dripping speed. The creation of music with natural elements is not random: it has long been a culturally universal pursuit, unifying communities since the early times. Through participation, the artist positions the viewer in the place of a co-creator, making them relate and reflect on their relationship with nature and the interdependence of life.

León’s research is about exploring the unpredictable character of biological response. He guides the evolution of his pieces by influencing their environmental factors. The end result are shapes and textures beyond imagination, a proof that nature is an inexhaustible source of inspiration. His piece Atómico (Atomic, 2016), for example, reminds of an inverted atomic explosion, or maybe a hanging fruit from an unknown tree, enriched by shades of greens and browns. The piece is developed solely with sea salt crystals which the artist manipulates though humidity and halts them once he is satisfied with the outcome. For his Untitled Works (2010-2019) with fungi and Acetylsalicylic acid, he also incorporates industrial artefacts such as light bulbs and chemical tools like test tubes and flasks. The introduction of these media suggests that the artist is an observer captivated by metamorphosis.

His art reminds me of Michel Blazy’s (Monaco, 1956) work, as they both inspect the different stages in life through living works, sharing authorship with nature. Just like León, Blazy’s work delves into the concept of transmutation. In his work Bar à Oranges (2012), Blazy invites viewers to make themselves orange juice and instead of discarding the halves, place them on a wooden shelf. As days pass by, the fruit develops mould, attracts flies and becomes an ecosystem unto itself. In this way, he gives prominence to parts of life cycles society looks away from, like putrefaction and dissolution. As such, Blazy not only confronts us with our own mortality but also explores how death is the beginning of a new form of life.

For León, there is no need to look far away to find fascination. In Epicentro Magnético (Magnetic Epicentre, 2015), he creates a water drip system on plant debris, mushrooms and fungi. The work might be interpreted as a more sensible and humble relationship with one’s surroundings, trying to find identity by connecting with what is close. These natural processes accentuate biology’s own pace regardless of humans’ pursuit of control over it. They encourage a more grounded reading of our presence on Earth.

Many times, León creates systems with hoards, valves and faucets. Their functionality depends on water mechanisms. These technologies may allude to the mechanics of inventions from the 18th Centuries: a lack of digitalisation and the fascination with pure function. For Campanario (Bell Tower, 2018) he develops an installation that acts as a water drum, consisting of hoards, a distribution method, suspended buckets and pots. The work serves as an immersive experience that recreates the soothing sounds viewers might hear on a rainy day. However, in this case, the dripping can be controlled, alluding to human’s impactful yet not omnipotent actions.

His work also challenges the concept of linear time, articulating the convergence between the past, the present and the future. For his project Presencia (2017), he builds a wooden structure in San Cosme de las Ensenadas Cemetery in the province of Corrientes (Argentina), which housed another one of his dripping machines. The conceptual notion behind the projects is to embrace the neo-gothic architecture of the surrounding mausoleums and to reinterpret our relationship with them. Simply put, the works make viewers see death from a different perspective. Acting as a meeting point between the diverse chronologies, León aims to make viewers question their passage through this World. He abstracts timelines, myths and the legacies of different generations. Emphasised by the mantra of rain—a timeless sound— the installation generates a space for reflection and rest.

When analysing León’s work, the role of water is not a minor one; it is the departing point for each of his pieces. None of the artist’s processes would be possible without its manipulation. As such, his art symbolises his Heraclitean vision even from the medium’s choice. His artworks explore how there is only one certainty: that things always change.

In essence, the relevance of Donjo León’s art lies in the aesthetic and philosophical appreciation of our environment. It acts as an ode to the compelling variety and transitional character of life. By foregrounding the vast universe every organism encompasses, he makes the viewer question their place in the World on the larger scale of things. In other words, his art has the power to ground us. It acts as a reminder of the common stem between every being that passes through this World.

Bibliography:

Bennet, Tony. The Exhibitionary Complex. New Formations, No. 4, 73-102. Spring 1988.

De Montebello, Philippe. “Whose Muse? Art Museums and the Public Trust.” In Art Museums, Inspiring Public Trust, edited by James Cuno, 151-169. Woodstock: Princeton University Press, 2004.

Huyssen, Andreas. “Twilight Memories: Making Time in a Culture of Amnesia.” In Escape From Amnesia: The Museum as Mass Medium, 13-35. New York: Routledge, 1995

Kossak, Florian. “Museum Making: Narratives, Architecture, Exhibitions.” In Productive Exhibitions: Looking backwards to go forward, edited by Suzanne Macleod, Laura Hourston Hanks and Jonathan Hale, 213-221. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, 2012.