Autoconstrucción

overview

Autoconstrucción, or ‘self-building’, is an ongoing body of work by Abraham Cruzvillegas that consists of structures in a constant state of construction, destruction, rebuilding and open-ended motion. Sculptures made of locally culled detritus succinctly constructed for renewed purpose, they are at once commentary on the byproducts of capitalism and mass-production and homages to the efficiency of collective necessity.

During his site visit to Sharjah in March 2014, Cruzvillegas stumbled upon the Bird and Animal Market. There he found various livestock and exotic birds and was drawn in particular to ‘falcons sitting on ridiculous sticks with helmets covering their eyes.’ Returning to Sharjah a year after his first visit, Cruzvillegas goes back to the market to simply look – searching for clues, histories and objects long discarded. Along the way he will gather found materials to propose a new structure of rest and display for the market’s falcons.

This project was part of Sharjah Biennial 12