Inés y Nuria Benítez,
maestro Jacinto Castro.

Octubre 2019.

Abierto Mexicano de Diseño “Nada Sobra”, CDMX.

Artículos relacionados / Related articles

Lo que se acumula crece.
Apilar no por nada incluye la palabra pilar.
Lo que se apila crece hacia arriba,
Para hacerse pilar.

En México, los pilares invisible representan la esperanza del crecimiento… Los castillos invisibles que se dilucidan a partir de trozos protuberantes de varilla de acero en las azoteas grises, permiten vislumbrar la esperanza por crecer, por seguir construyendo sobre lo que ya se ha erigido. El crecimiento por un lado anacrónico, y por otro sucesivo, de la arquitectura popular nos hace recordar una y otra vez que nada sobra y todo se acumula.

A partir de una aproximación humorística y metafórica al ingenio de la materialidad mexicana, las seis columnas en conjunto son un intento por plantear órdenes de columnas a partir de los paisajes más cotidianos de acumulación e improvisación en el imaginario colectivo y en la cultura popular mexicana.

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In Mexico, the invisible pillars represent the hope of growth ... The ghostly reinforcement bars (castillos armados) that are elucidated from protruding pieces of steel rods in the gray roof tops, allow us to glimpse the consistent wish to expand, to continue building on what has already been erected. Successively speaking from an anachronistic perspective, the growth of popular architecture reminds us again and again that nothing is left surplus, but rather, everything accumulates.

As a humorous and metaphorical approach to the inventiveness of Mexican materiality, these six columns together are an attempt to raise a ‘new’ column order from the most day-to-day landscapes of accumulation and spontaneity in Mexican popular culture and its collective imaginary.

Fotos: Luis Young

“Eye Motion”

Inés Benítez Gómez
Cell Animation
16 mm Film
May 2019

This video in particular holds the refraction of a hand drawn frame by frame animation, a choreography for the eye. Playing around the same discourse, forcing the analog, contact of making and remaking, playing with the non existent materiality and the digital.

For instance, this spatial photography becomes anti-static, by allowing the viewer to recognize the moving eye, allowing them to become the protagonists, while focusing and moving around a confined stroke, brush stroke, dancing along. Images here are blurred, open to interpretation and the imaginary of the spectator's spatial construction, through the potential of light stimulating the eye, and the self: Floating cells, dots swelling to create a light-filled field, the waltz of two dots, tornadoes, stretching tensions, blinking sparks, three dots after the physicality of only two...

“A quien corresponda:”
Inés Benítez + Edgar Rodríguez
Kirkland Gallery, Harvard Graduate School of Design,
2019

aquiencorresponda.xyz

'A quien corresponda:' is an exhibition at the Kirkland Gallery at the Graduate School of Design at Harvard, which emerges as a call within another. Being aware of the scarcity of opportunities for exhibition and appreciation of design in Mexico, an open invitation extended to practices dedicated to architecture, design and / or art interested in showing their work in an area of 0.0588m2 (the area of one leaf letter) within the space of the gallery, taking advantage of the opportunity to appropriate the gallery in a period of two weeks.

The call offers a physical space abroad, which questions exclusivity as a tool for legitimizing creative disciplines, as well as the role of institutions and their validation of trajectories and opportunities. Convinced of the importance of having a larger body of participants, discourse and work of professionals not directly related to the university, the intention of the call was to promote its dissemination and outreach reach, making it reach as many stakeholders and possible participants.

This initiative takes as a direct reference the Postal Art movement, in which openness and inclusion are essential and where there are no registration fees, juries or censorship. For this reason, the participants sent their proposals by express parcel service, and all the received packages were displayed and later they will be archived in a digital compendium of public access.

The museography follows the order of the registration numbers, accompanied by a compendium of descriptive letters (also on a letter page) for each piece, as well as a projection with photographs of all the packages that were received, before being opened.

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Cambridge, Massachusetts a 23 de Abril de 2019.

A quien corresponda: 

Es una exhibición en la Galería Kirkland en la Escuela de Posgrado de Diseño en Harvard, que surge como una convocatoria dentro de otra. Al estar conscientes de la escasez de oportunidades de exhibición y apreciación del diseño en México, se extendió una invitación abierta a prácticas dedicadas a la arquitectura, diseño y/o arte interesadas en mostrar su trabajo en un área de 0.0588m2 (el área de una hoja carta) dentro del espacio de la galería, aprovechando la oportunidad de poder apropiarse de ella por un periodo de dos semanas. 

La convocatoria ofrece un espacio físico en el extranjero, que cuestiona la exclusividad como herramienta de legitimación de las disciplinas creativas, así como el rol de las instituciones y su validación de trayectorias y oportunidades.

Convencidos de la importancia de contar con un cuerpo mayor de participantes, discurso y trabajo de profesionistas no relacionados directamente con la Universidad, la intención de la convocatoria fue principalmente promover su difusión y alcance desbordado, haciéndola llegar a cuantos más interesados y participantes posibles. 

“El objetivo de esta convocatoria es iniciar correspondencias horizontales y globales, que incentiven y enriquezcan los discursos creativos en México. Lo valioso de este encuentro consta en el intercambio de ideas en el proceso, aunado al hecho de pertenecer a una comunidad global que traspasa las barreras y limitantes de lenguaje, ideología, contexto, religión, y espacio. Consideramos que exhibir arquitectura y diseño en el 2019 debe ser sinónimo de inclusión y diversidad, intercambio, apertura, y temáticas informadas, relevantes y variadas. De esperanza, ilusión y celebración. Debe cuestionar el valor de la autoría y la originalidad, del papel de las instituciones y curadores, y los límites de la disciplina. Debe también reiterar el rol social y profesional de la disciplina, su capacidad y sus efectos; reafirmar, reconquistar, reclamar sus alcances.”

Esta iniciativa toma como referencia directa el movimiento de Arte Postal, en el cual la apertura y la inclusión son esenciales y dónde no existen cuotas de inscripción, jurados o censuras. Por este motivo, los participantes enviaron sus propuestas por servicio de paquetería exprés, y todos los paquetes recibidos fueron exhibidos y posteriormente serán archivados en un compendio digital de acceso público. 

La museografía sigue el orden de los números de registro, acompañado de un compendio de cartas descriptivas (también en hoja carta) que acompañan a cada pieza, así como de una proyección con fotografías de todos los paquetes que se recibieron, antes de ser abiertos.

La exhibición, inaugurada el día 19 de Abril de 2019, alberga el trabajo de 137 prácticas, de los 203 participantes originalmente registrados.

Atentamente, 

Inés Benítez y Edgar Rodríguez

“For Holly”

Inés Benítez Gómez, Mariel Collard Arias, Nicolás Delgado Álcega

Advised by Rosetta S. Elkin and William (Ned ) Friedman
Field Methods and Living Collections
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
December 2018

These boxes and book are the outcome of a semester-long search at the Arnold Arboretum focused on the complexities behind research on the field and the development of its corresponding methodologies. 

The boxes are the documents that evidence our process: a non-linear path where experiences, ideas, questions, methods and answers emerge seemingly out of order; concurrently through a process of back and forth. Rather than organize the documents as one would in an archive, they are here more so arranged like one would a journal. The aim has been to collect our work in such a way that it allows us to constantly question the way we truly arrived to conclusions; not chronologically; not through the application of standardized procedures independent of the questions, where each new step implies blindly committing to its antecedent ones.

The book is our attempt to elucidate our work to others; to bring it into the field of knowledge exchange in a format that effectively translates what has been rich about our process. The book is organized in time and yet not in a true chronology; it represents relevant references, encounters and exercises, if not in their entirety, at least one to one; actual scale; just like we tried to approach the American Holly specimen that worked with us during the final stretch. It seeks to communicate the value of working on the field; with specimens rather than categories, paying attention to what can be perceived and understood then and there, before resorting to cameras, microscopes or model spaces... 

“Untitled (Tilted)”

Cotton, Potassium ferricyanide
1 yard x 1 yard x 5 minutes
Performance: 5 minutes
April 2019

This piece of dynamic suspension, challenges the static aesthetic of its medium: liquid photography.

A print of simultaneous viewpoints, of both deep and volatile content, ephemeral and fixed outlines, solid and transparent interplay. Liquid alchemy of unraveled content, the piece registers light and movement with the cinematic light characteristic of photograms and photosensitive procedures, challenging its own revealing method and capacity.

The juxtaposition of materials on such photosensitive material, composes a synthesis of ordinary forms amidst the planes of floating shadows, becoming volumetric, that seem horizontal at first but also intersect in verticality.

Forms are in self transformation, as they too are being manipulated. An ordinary setting, that becomes delineated as a flowing image, where transparency and mass form a sculptural and functional dialogue, thinking of the structure of things out together, changing through consumption: A slice of sourdough bread, ¼ stick of

Butter, and a cute little knife, a tiny jar of Apricot & Almond marmalade, a glass with Still water, two clementines, one Soft Boiled egg, Salt and Pepper (just a twist of each), and one Double espresso.

Along with the textile piece, a wooden egg holder, a wooden egg and a chicken egg (due to its relevant role and fixation within the Bauhaus photography experimentation) play along with the discourse of such setting, suggesting a closer observation onto the materiality and performance of the whole construct as a suggestion of miss-fits in verticality and bodily interactions.

Harvard University Graduate School of Design, Community Service Fellowship + Municipio de Arganil, Portugal.

Inés Benítez
Melissa Naranjo

Summer 2018

“The New Originals“

Inés Benítez
Eric Moed
Penelope Phylactopoulos

Advised by John Peterson
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
May 2018

A collective manifesto unfolded over the course of our independent study. It is comprised of the ideas contained in weekly personal pros/statements from each one of us, challenging the current state of architecture and charting a new course intro a shared terminology. Each week three individual written statements were revealed and discussed every Monday (Manifesto Monday’s) to create a collective voice, with a shared conclusion. The shared manifesto was hand written into a single folded sheet of paper, as a representation of the shared stream of consciousness that developed, revealing the process and progress that took place.

The format of the manifesto is divided into three larger themes:

a. Analysis of the current state of architecture and direct ways to change it.
b. Personal narratives.
c. Personal beliefs and thoughts on the current practice model of architecture.

Each week our manifesto was sealed with a stamp; using our stamp to validate our thoughts, not as architects do, to get approvals.

We conducted a study of existent art and design manifestos, searching for language devices and content which we felt strongly about – either in agreement with or deeply against. Out of all of the manifestos we read, we felt that the Futurist Manifesto by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, written in 1909, was both the most intriguing and problematic precedent. Filippo Tommaso Marinetti was directly aligned with both fascist and anarchist ideologies. He glorified war, sexism and violence in the Futurist Manifesto. However, many of the other ideas reflected in the manifesto are still relevant today as they were written in a time of great upheaval, change and technological innovation. We felt it appropriate and necessary to update it.

FeedBack is a meal. FeedBack is centered around the unfolding the New Futurist Manifesto, which consists of three parts, an introduction, an eleven point manifesto, and a conclusion, an ode to the format of the Futurist Manifesto; parts of which are printed on the sous plat. The primary focus of FeedBack is to encourage feedback of our eleven point manifesto. These eleven points reflect how we collectively see architecture and what we believe needs to be changed.

FeedBack can be performed anywhere, any number of times.

Filippo Tommaso Marinetti also had many performances and writings regarding food. One such example is the “Tactile Dinner” recently reenacted at the Guggenheim in 2014. He also wrote the Manifesto of Futurist Cooking, criticizing pasta! Marinetti believed that people think, dream and act according to what they eat and drink.

Food has been a big part of our working culture. Meeting every Monday morning to work on writing and research, we always made it a point to share in a meal. We also felt surprised that sharing food and drink, and caring for ourselves and each other, seemed to be antithetical to the unwritten rules of the architect’s daily routine. By refusing to give into the existing culture of self-sacrifice we emerged at table of opportunity and productivity.

We hope the FeedBack loop is a seamless branch of our weekly excursive tradition.

“one an(d)other”

Hanna Kim
Inés Benítez

Advised by Jill Johnson and Silvia Benedito
Harvard University Graduate School of Design,
Harvard University Dance Program
May 2018

Distance, proximity, familiarity, understanding—as humans, we find familiarity in proximate things and are attracted to things that are familiar to us.

Distance breeds misunderstanding, contempt, and apathy. Consequently, we suffer from the systematic divisions of our cities and communities.

Clothing represents an omnipresent second skin to which we have grown to be familiar. Without it, we feel vulnerable and discomposed. We share our space inside clothing as a symbol of physical and emotional closeness.

One an(d)other explores a narrative of proximity and distance through motion. As two separate bodies come into contact, a new intimacy is born, for the culmination of proximity is touch. As they move further apart, the immediate presence of one another is lost. Clothing, motion, and sound create an interdisciplinary experience. The performers emit separate soundtracks that harmonize as they dance together.

In the title, (d) represents an invisible distance that separates the performers. By becoming proximate in their most vulnerable space, the performers overcome “other” and become “another.”

Performed on March 22nd, 10am at the Harvard Dance Center.
Exhibited on Platform 11, Setting The Table, Druker Gallery.

Photograms for Stereograph

Advised by Katarina Burin, Laura A. Frahm, and Lindsey Lodhie
Harvard University, Visual and Environmental Studies
May 2019

This piece is named after the image “t or 20” of the Stereographs that were made for Walter Gropius’ House in 1944 by the photographer Louis Sutro. This Stereograph was the first one to be built for Harvard University, and is now lost in the archives. Accompanied by a description narrating each image, the last one of the series catched my eye, and became a direct source of inspiration:

“t or 20.
Dining Room Table, Night Illumination: Lamps and indirect floodlights as nighttime careful use of illumination provides an interest to replace that afforded in day-time views through the window. Here in the dining room, all illumination is projected from a spotlight in the ceiling onto the table and is reflected back into the faces of the diners. The effect is to permit you to see well all those around the dining room table but see only darkness beyond, with the intimacy of candle light.” (Sutro, Louis. Gropius House Stereographs , 1916.)

This work aims to take the viewer into a virtual ir-reality, of camera-less photographies of inexistent galaxies, ephemeral with light, registered in paper through distinct materialities. Original and omnipresent, pairs of images convert into a single one, that inverts the three-dimensionality of the stereographic process by turning contact prints into imaginary spaces. The viewer might wonder, are these from remote galaxies, or granular microscopic details?

This series of “Photogenic Drawings” (Barry Bergdoll’s term for describing Moholy-Nagy’s photograms) are performed with the challenges of some almost forgotten methods, amidst today’s saturation of images.

Replacing day time views with darkness, light spots are reflected into sight, becoming all the places at once, that cannot blink inside a camera.

Social Art Residency
Tecoh, Yucatán
February 2019

http://socialart.mx/

“Two Friends Meet at a Café on a Saturday Morning“
Inés Benítez + Hanna Kim
Advised by Silvia Benedito and Silvia Kolbowski
May 2018

“You will find lies in the light and truth in the dark.”

Here is a story of two friends, Inés and Hanna, who lie to each other over a piece of cake. Inés offers to share the cake and gets rejected, because Hanna is on a diet and wouldn’t have such sugary treat. So Inés proceeds to enjoy the cake for herself. 
[...]
The cake represents many things: fear, denial, repression, and pleasure. The discomfort caused by the presence and the unapologetic consumption of cake reflect our physical, psychical, and social anxiety and irony. What constitutes a perfect body and how could one achieve it? Are we telling the truth when we say we are all liars? How can someone be hungry in a world of plenty?

Two Friends meet at a Cafe on a Saturday Morning attempts to ask these open-ended questions through lies, psychoanalysis, and slapstick comedy. The allusion to silent film of the 1920s adds nostalgic sweetness and lightheartedness, contrasting with the diverse cross-section of our everyday. We hope that this 5-minute film confronts the spectator to seek truth, in light and in the dark.

“Disability Disclosed”
Editorial Design
April 2019

Nikita Andersson
Miso Kwak
International Higher Education and Disability Organization,
Harvard University Graduate School of Education

“Air to Air, a breathing screen“

Stella Kuma
Inés Benítez

April 2018
Interdisciplinary Art and Design Practices,
Harvard University Graduate School of Design

The air surrounds us, both in its physical and abstract meaning. It is the invisible and constantly shared medium: a commons. In the physical sense, the air promiscuously travels inside and outside our bodies, blurring boundaries between the interior and exterior of a single entity as well as boundaries between different entities. Between the most intimate and the most public. In an abstract sense, the air contains a shared pool of affect, creating a collectively charged atmosphere that can shape the way an individual feels, thinks and acts. 

This project is inspired by our desire to materialize and isolate the atmosphere, and in doing so, raising questions about the relationship between the physical air and the affective air, and also about the materiality and immateriality of atmospheres. In this work, we impose a finite space that keeps the air from dispersing in physical space, removing the intimate atmospheric engagement of the viewers with the screen. What does it mean to exchange and share the atmosphere, in the physical sense and the abstract sense? Is it possible to contain an affective atmosphere? What is the role of media in this process? 

We are re-establishing an equilibrium between the observed and the abstract, the sensible and the intellectual. With an intermingling of subject and substance, body and world, the intelligible and the rational. Through evocative images of breathing, creating an atmosphere of connection and movement. Invisible, yet tangible.

“Consciousness belongs to those singular moments when the body is tangential to itself” 
(Michel Serres – “The Five Senses”)

 “Although there certainly are atmospheres, whose corporeal effect is scarce and anyway not easy to observe, perceiving atmospheres mostly means being touched by them in the felt-body.” 
(Tonino Griffero,” atmospheres, aesthetics of emotional spaces”)

“Hygenic Taco”

Video / Performance
2018