Amidst the urban chaos of Mexico City, the largest metropolis on the planet, internationally renowned Mexican sculptor Yvonne Domenge seeks beauty through the universal language of geometry.
Domenge uses materials as diverse as bronze, carbon, steel, silver, stone and cement to explore the harmony and perfection of nature. “Geometry provides me with freedom and order. My most important teacher is nature,” said Domenge in a recent phone interview from Mexico City. “Nature creates wonderful molecular structures in flowers and plants. Geometry surrounds us.”
Domenge’s monumental pieces will be on display in Millennium Park’s North and South Boeing Galleries from April 6th through October 1st. The exhibition “Interconnected: The Sculptures of Yvonne Domenge” is presented by the National Museum of Mexican Art and the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs.
Domenge is the first woman and Latina to exhibit her work in the world-famous Millennium Park crowned by the celebrated “Cloud Gate” —or “Bean” as Chicagoans affectionately renamed it— created by Indian-born British artist Anish Kapoor.
The exhibit is the last event of “Mexico 2010,” a year- long celebration of the bicentennial of the Independence of Mexico and the centennial of its Revolution. “Mexico 2010” included 70 events organized by some of the most prestigious cultural institutions in the city such as the Art Institute, the Goodman Theater, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
“Interconnected: The Sculptures of Yvonne Domenge” includes six monumental pieces. The largest piece, a bronze sculpture painted bright red titled “Tree of Life,” measures 16 feet tall and is displayed in the North Boeing Gallery, along with two companion “seeds” of smaller size.
In pre-Columbian civilizations, the tree of life symbolized the connection between the underworld, the sky, and the world of the living. “The seeds scattered beneath are a metaphor for the continuity of life,” Domenge explained.
The South Boeing Gallery will show three steel spheres: “Tabachin Ribbon,” a 13 foot tall yellow sculpture; “Wind Waves,” a white sculpture about 11 feet high and “Coral,” painted blue, approximately 10 feet high.
Domenge said that her spheres seek to convey the harmony of the cosmos. “We are part of a collective conscience,” Domenge expounded. “We are privileged to live within this order and beauty. My work celebrates life itself.”
Yvonne Domenge was born in Mexico City in 1946. She studied art at the Outremont School in Montreal, Canada, at the Corcoran School of Art, Washington, D.C., and in Mexico City. Domenge has had more than 40 solo shows in museums around the world, including the Musée du Louvre in Paris. Her sculpture “Lily” won a gold medal at the Olympic Landscape Sculpture Design Contest in Beijing.
The “Mexico 2010” program offers a unique vehicle for Chicago cultural institutions to reach out to the Latino community. Cultural institutions in the city need to attract an increasingly diverse market. Otherwise, these venerable institutions run the risk of becoming irrelevant in the face of rapidly changing demographics.
Exhibits such as “Interconnected: The Sculptures of Yvonne Domenge” contribute not only to connect the Latino community with the city at large, but lead also to a better understanding of Mexico and its complex and rich history, culture and art.