Trained as a mathematician, Julia Carrillo experiments with different solutions that entail a scientific point of view, in the process of translating scientific problems into aesthetically alluring artworks. Though the average visitor may not have the background needed to entirely grasp Carrillo’s complex mathematical and formal solutions, he or she will still be able to appreciate the power and beauty that emanate from them.
With this piece, especially made for Registro 04, Carrillo gives us the opportunity to physically enter an enormous kaleidoscope, entitled Adhara. The installation creates an illusion of infinite space with the careful placement of four mirrors based on a precise geometric calculation. Viewers are faced with a space composed of forms, colors and light, recalling the structure of a fractal. The infinite reflections of various geometries, which progressively shrink in size, surround the visitor to produce a dizzying experience. The angles at which the mirrors are cut and placed are calculated with such precision that the slightest alteration in their positioning would dramatically upset the experience. Various cubes of light seem to float in space as their hues very subtly change. The difference between this kaleidoscope and others is that we can enter this mirrored structure instead of observing it from the outside through a peephole, and this radically transforms our experience as viewers.
The title Adhara refers to the binary star of the same name in the constellation Canis Major. Binary stars are celestial bodies that interact as they orbit each other. Carrillo selects her titles from a poetic frame of mind, and their purpose is to add something to the reflection. Though viewers might at first feel like they are facing a kind of riddle, the titles provide them with references that shed light on the issue. Carrillo is not attempting to be conceptually obscure; rather, she wants to refer to issues that are independent from the way we perceive things. In this case, the shapes of the cubes projected in her kaleidoscope remind her, on a poetic level, of binary stars.
The exhibition also features a series of paintings by Carrillo that illustrate the interrelation of various modules on a Cartesian plane. These are formal solutions to constructive operations in which the modules are combined and appear as coordinates. The spaces generated are translucent, thus rendering visible the geometric interaction between various volumes. Ultimately, all these pieces are linked in the way they question form, light, color, transparency, and inner and outer space.