FRANCIS AL?S (Antwerp 1959–lives and works in Mexico City) Balderas. 1989. Oil on board covered with canvas. Signed lower left: ALYS. 13 × 18 cm. Provenance: - Galerie Yvon Lambert, Paris. - Private collection. - Phillips New York, Auction 29 May 2014, lot 61 (verso with the label). - Christies Paris, Auction 8 June 2018, lot 227 (verso with the label). - Collection Switzerland. “What I cant tell with a photo I will tell with a painting, and what I cant tell with a painting I will tell with a video or text sometimes, et cetera.” Francis Al?s. Francis Al?s was born in Antwerp in 1959. He studied architecture and urban planning. In 1986 he moved to Mexico City. During his numerous walks through the capital, he observed and documented daily life in and around this metropolis. It was his encounters with the problems of urbanisation and social unrest that inspired him from 1990 onwards to become a visual artist. He uses the urban space, which he reproduces through performative actions. His media for this include painting, drawing, photography, and video. Public space becomes his material, and his own body, or that of other people, his instrument, which he captures in public spaces. Step by step, he appropriates the social and anthropological dimensions of his environment, almost in a documentary and analytical manner, often in the form of series of works. Over the years, Al?s has extended his excursions to other urban spaces, documenting London, Jerusalem, Venice, or Havana. Precise, relevant social and political allusions run through his entire oeuvre. At the same time, these themes are expressed in a poetic ambiguity through his artistic language, so that his oeuvre permanently questions the link between artistic, creative, and political intervention. Here we have two examples that illustrate this link very well. One is a small-format painting from 1989 from his early work "Balderas" (Lot 3463). Today, the Avenida Balderas is a multi- lane, that is one of the most important traffic arteries in Mexico City. This north-south axis runs west of the old city centre. It was named after Lucas Balderas, a Mexican officer who died in the war against the North American invasion in 1847. This street is full of history, as it has been repeatedly destroyed and partially rebuilt, which means that it is now peppered with a wide variety of architectural phases. The empty street in the hazy, Hitchcockian red dusk radiates an eerie, ominous yet poetic calm. The other work presented here, from 1994, is named after the city of Monterrey (Lot 3464), located in the north-east of Mexico and is the capital of the Mexican state of Nuevo León. It is one of the most important industrial centres in Latin America, processing raw material products such as steel, building materials and glass, among other things. This megacity is also known for its very high crime rate. Drug trafficking, illegal emigration to the USA, but above all corruption, violent crime and other problems are always on the agenda. The artist characteristically depicts the daily challenges of the region in this postcard format. A burning car in an isolated industrial or suburban area. At the forefront of the viewers mind is the question of what triggered this scene — was it vandalism, theft, escape, or drug dealing that led to this outcome? But the eye is quickly led away from such a sensation. The glowing car adds warmth to the cold surroundings. The painting begins to tell its own poetic fable. The artist himself describes his practice as "a kind of discursive exploration made up of episodes, metaphors or parables". FRANCIS AL?S (Antwerpen 1959–lebt und arbeitet in Mexiko-Stadt) Balderas. 1989. ?l auf mit Leinwand bespanntem Holz. Unten links signiert: ALYS. 13 × 18 cm. Provenienz: - Galerie Yvon Lambert, Paris. - Privatsammlung. - Phillips New York, Auktion 29. Mai 2014, Los 61 (verso mit dem Etikett). - Christies Paris, Auktion 8. Juni 2018, Los 227 (verso mit dem Etikett). - Sammlung Schweiz. “What I cant tell with a photo I will tell with a painting, and what I cant tell with a painting I will tell with a video or text sometimes, et cetera.” Francis Al?s. Francis Al?s wird 1959 in Antwerpen geboren. Er studiert Architektur und Stadtplanung. 1986 zieht er nach Mexiko-Stadt. Durch seine zahlreichen Spazierg?nge durch diese Metropole beobachtet und dokumentiert er das t?gliche Leben in und um**Stadt. Es sind seine Konfrontationen mit Problemen der Urbanisierung und sozialen Unruhen,**ihn ab 1990 dazu inspirieren, Bildender Künstler zu werden. Er nutzt den urbanen Raum, welchen er mittels performativer Aktionen wiedergibt. Seine Medien dafür umschliessen**Malerei, Zeichnung, Fotografie und Video. Der ?ffentliche Raum wird zu seinem Material und sein K?rper, oder der anderer Personen, zu seinem Instrument, welchen er in ?ffentlichen R?umen festh?lt. Schritt für Schritt eignet er sich, fast dokumentarisch und analytisch, oftmals in Form von Werkserien,**sozialen und anthropologischen Dimensionen seiner Umgebung an. Im Lauf der Jahre dehnt Al?s seine Ausflüge auf andere urbane R?ume aus und dokumentiert London, Jerusalem, Venedig oder Havanna.**pr?zisen, sozialen und politischen Anspielungen ziehen sich durch sein gesamtes Schaffen. Gleichzeitig werden diese Themen durch seine künstlerische Sprache in eine poetische Vieldeutigkeit ge?ussert, sodass sein Oeuvre**Verknüpfung zwischen künstlerischem, Schaffen und politischer Intervention permanent hinterfragt. Wir haben hier zwei Beispiele, welche diese Verknüpfung sehr gut darstellen. Zum einen das kleinformatige Gem?lde von 1989 aus seinem Frühwerk ?Balderas“ (Los 3463).**Avenida Balderas ist heute eine vielspurige Strasse,**zu einer der wichtigsten Verkehrsadern der Stadt Mexiko z?hlt. Diese Nord-Süd-Achse verl?uft westlich vom alten Stadtzentrum. Sie wurde nach Lucas Balderas benannt, einem mexikanischen Offizier, der 1847 im Krieg gegen**Nordamerikanische Invasion gefallen ist. Diese Strasse ist historisch aufgeladen, da sie vermehrt zerst?rt und teils wiederaufgebaut worden ist, wodurch sie heute mit unterschiedlichsten architektonischen Stilen bestückt ist.**leere Strasse in trüber, Hitchcock roter Abendd?mmerung strahlt eine unheimliche, bedrohliche und dennoch poetische Ruhe aus. Das zweite Werk von 1994 ist nach der Stadt Monterrey benannt (Los 3464),**im Nordosten von Mexiko liegt, und**Hauptstadt des mexikanischen Bundesstaates Nuevo León ist. Sie ist einer der bedeutendsten Industriestandorte Lateinamerikas, unter anderem durch**Herstellung von Produkten wie Stahl, Baustoffen und Glas.**Millionenstadt ist gleichfalls für ihre hohe Kriminalit?tsrate bekannt. Drogenhandel, illegale Auswanderung in**USA, aber vor allem Korruption, Gewaltdelikte und andere Probleme stehen immer wieder auf der Tagesordnung. Charakteristisch stellt der Künstler in diesem, Postkartenformat**t?glichen Herausforderungen der Region dar. Ein brennendes Auto in einem isolierten Industrie- oder Vorstadtgebiet. Im Vordergrund der überlegungen des Betrachters steht**Frage nach dem Ausl?ser dieser Szene – ob Vandalismus, Diebstahl, Flucht oder Drogenhandel zu diesem Ergebnis führte? Doch schnell wird das Auge von der Stimmung abgelenkt. Das glühende Auto w?rmt**kalte Umgebung auf. Das Bild beginnt seine eigene poetische Fabel zu erz?hlen. Der Künstler selbst beschreibt seine Praxis als ?eine Art diskursive Auseinandersetzung aus Episoden, Metaphern oder Parabeln“. notes:*
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