Sin título (Palimpsestos de corrupción 1985-2017) II

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Sin título (Palimpsestos de corrupción 1985-2017) II

2018

Fritzia Irízar

Mexican, born 1977

In this work, Irízar adopts the form of Shinto funerary tablets to mourn the unnamed victims of corruption. In the place of the names and birth and death dates of the deceased traditionally found on such tablets, the artist laser-etches the abstracted forms of government buildings. Sleek and simple at the top they increasingly fall into states of confusion, collapse, and disarray toward the bottom. Pointing to such buildings as built on “foundations of corruption, conflicts of interest, business favoritism, and political negligence,” she asks us to sort through the rubble to identify the victims of these broken systems.

Lazer cut on burnt wood

Each: 59 x 6 in (150 x 15 cm)

Gift of Dennis Braddock in memory of Janice Niemi

2023.22.6

Provenance: The artist; [Galería y Proyectos NF SL, Madrid]; purchased from gallery by Dennis Braddock and Janice Niemi, Seattle, Washington, December 14, 2017

Photo: Scott Leen

Now on view at the Seattle Art Museum

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