Francisco Infante: "As a child I wanted to be a carpenter"

Classic of modernism: "Art for what exists? For people to meet him "
Francisco Infante admitted in this interview, he did not know what happiness is and whether he is pleased his artistic career. For many years, along with his wife, Infante makes strange objects at the intersection of photography and video, abstraction, and land art, often in his installations, which have made him a name throughout the world, part of the mirror.

A similar system of reflections and doublings was Elena Kalashnikova, asking Maitre metaphysical art of the geometry of space and on the way in art, a new alpine project and that is happiness. In this conversation Infante admitted that it was almost not interested in the view of spectators, and talked about how to destroy all his realistic work.
- As a child you thought about what to become? The family had been talking about this?
- As a child I wanted to be a carpenter. I like the smell of wood, when it rezhesh. Amazing smell.

- every tree?
- Lipa smells better than others. Oak or beech, for example, especially not porezhesh - very solid. A fir, pine, of course, running the material.
- But in his works you somehow used the carpentry skills?
- Use. Structures of sticks and reechek did. Until now I do something additional - a frame, for example. All of himself.

Painter, carpenter, carpenter - is almost the same thing. Artist - is someone who knows something to do with his hands. Of course, everything goes through my head, but his hands have to be skilled, mad, very skillful. They should be muscle memory.

The traditional artist, working with a brush and paint, in the feeling of mixing paints, puts them on the canvas and then watching the result. I think the carpenter and the carpenter as well.

- Why are among geometric figures, with whom you work frequently appears triangle? On this property to your creativity and your friend said - poet Vsevolod Nekrasov.
- The geometric shape orients consciousness to the metaphysical problems of which I am trying to say. Here is involuntarily prompted to geometry, pure abstraction, forms speculative in nature.

In their pure form, of course - no triangles or circles, except the Sun and Moon, and these circles are not entirely correct. The tendency for the transfer of metaphysics in the art of influencing the choice of these forms to me, not what I choose triangle. He has no advantage over the square or other shapes.

- That is, during the work you do not think: "Now we must do something"? The figures appear in the head by itself?
- Yes, it happens to some synthesis of consciousness, which says: "It would be a better triangle. If you start to analyze why you are coming from, or what not come, because the synthesis of the artist's head wider, richer, more extensive total.
- Vsevolod Nekrasov in magazines to your exhibition wrote: "... landscapes - bright, spring, snow, sky and sun - in my opinion, the favorite motifs Infante". Do you agree?
- He is like a thin person, correctly noted. I really love the sun, snow space. Two weeks ago we returned from Switzerland, a month working in the snowy Alps. The fantastic feeling of nature, a major: the blue sky and snow - like a white sheet on which you can portray anything.

- But you do not know the feeling of fear of the snow cloth, which is the writer in front of a white sheet?
- Fear arises when you do not know what to do, or doing on inertia. But when I see the white snow with me that something is happening. I do not know how to call it. I activated, begin to think how to make it part of his art, etc. Fear no more so when you come prepared with ideas.
- Do you often come to nature with ready-made ideas?
- It varies. I try to think everything through, but nature is capricious, and creates the conditions that you previously did not know. The idea may come spontaneously, sometimes, something procured, but in a different manner, and is fully realizuesh his plan.

- Can you tell more about the Alpine project?
- We were invited for a month in the Alps, created all conditions: do whatever you want. Well we did. No, the job was not. What job? I do what I like. Well, because the snow, I was very inspired, created a number of projects. Name or motto cycle - "Alpine Snow".
- Some texts, films influenced you and your work?
- No, but the visual experience is affected because I'm a visual culture. But what impact, in what capacity and what proportions, it is difficult to say. This happens by itself, I can say that impressed me, and that - no.

Sometimes a plot inspired by nature and to know what to do there. Sometimes you go from country submissions, swarming in my head, they are driving and looking for the exit. And suddenly floats the idea, but not the same, and you start to think about where and how to implement it, looking for nature, sometimes for years.

- You like to go to museums? How are you as the viewer needed?
- It is necessary, but not in order to draw inspiration, and to rest, to stand at work and understand how it seems to me the meaning of life. I like to go to the Tretyakov Gallery, especially in the department of icons.
By Rublevskoye "Savior" come to be infinite, is synonymous with living art, the limit of human capabilities, the divine art in every sense.
- How you are interested in contemporary domestic art?
- Interesting. But I have a way of staring at art, including contemporary. I trusted him, but the opinion of critics, the more biased in contemporary culture, of little interest to me. It can be interesting if it corresponds to my impression.
To understand art, I did not call any of the books, nor to directories, like myself to watch and understand.

- Have you had experience working with composer Vladimir Martynov on his opera "Night in Galicia. His action perpetrated on the stage of parallel musical action, you called "The alignment of the mark. What gave you that experience and whether you worked with other composers?
- Martynov himself invited me, I was very pleased, so he sees something in common between them and me, and I agreed. He's such an intellectual - wrote books on art and at the same time a great composer. I really like his music. I do not have the practice of cooperation with other composers or composers.

- Are you satisfied with this experience?
- Half. In the end, did not work for objective reasons of the implementation, which I expected. Perhaps I misjudged the possibility of artists thought they could at the time of execution to move accordingly on the scene.

- What gives you the meeting, talk with the audience? Half an hour later you just it be. You do not know what kind of people come to see the work and ask you questions.
- I have this kind of art that is most adequate to show it can be in the form of slides. The story, I think, here is optional. In art its language, verbal language was not necessary to duplicate.
- Usually, their shows do not comment on that?
- We have to, people ask questions. But my answers - indirect explanation of what they see on the screen. I hope it adequately and there is no contradiction. In this sense of communication through the show, and then through the conversation.
- What do you think, well it develops your life in art?
- It is hard to say. Some know all about myself, I have their number do not belong. For me life - it is work, comprehension of meaning. I like it when through art, I understand something in life. For a short time is a state of calms, but life poses new questions, and we must solve them.

I do not know what happiness is. Some believe that the rich are happy. And in its own right. But among the rich is not all happy. In terms arranged by person, homeless man was unhappy, and perhaps he was just happy. Everyone is happy and unhappy in its own way.
- Your exhibitions were held in many countries. And where best to respond to your work?
- Frankly, the reaction of the audience I was little worried. Not because I'm arrogant, he simply does not do as I do. I told you once said that to me it is important to view a few people I know that they are not sovrut. I find it interesting and my own opinion.

And even more I trust the sense of responsibility, which should be in everyone doing his job. If I am satisfied with my work, I take upon myself the right to show them - if not, postpone or even destroyed.

- Destroyed?
- Sometimes. My finished work - shot slide. If I see that the result does not match the design, the better, of course, postpone it ...

When I was in art school, then destroyed his realistic work plan. Defiantly tossed in the trash, breaking in half, cutting. Radical young to gesture. Not that I am sorry about this, but now could see that I was then able, curious even.

- Can you tell more about those jobs?
- Still lifes, compositions, portraits, landscapes - all was. I radically changed his worldview, there was a momentum, and I threw all that preceded it. Silly little.

- Mature BL Pasternak renounced his early poems 1920.
- What does it mean - "denied"? Here Gogol burned the second volume of "Dead Souls". Here you have an incredible sense of responsibility.


- Gogol, this gesture was not the radicalism of his youth, how do you describe his act, he did it under the influence of their spiritual quest.
- I think so. Here and attitude to Pushkin, and the influence of their spiritual father. Nevertheless, people say goodbye to their past - destroys, tears, burns all that done. It is a pity that Gogol did not. Me and my work sorry. Some drawings kept mum because of its unworldly, for which I am very grateful. Remained pair beautiful things and drawings. Paper is easier to store, a canvas on a stretcher - prominent, big things.

- You can say that after you throw away their early work, you did not have zigzags in the works? How do you feel inside?
- It is difficult to talk about myself. I myself do not like artists who are doing the same thing. I think the system of artifacts is infinite, as nature or landscape. How can I give realism? .. People involved in this whole generations, and each brings something.

- So, the system of artifacts can not you bored?
- No. I have a principle - that the next cycle differed from the previous one. Although this is not for me to judge, but to critics, those who want to do it.

For those whose taste you trust?
- Yes. Not that I immediately ran to find out their opinions. Print photos, do show, then hear their opinions.

- You think through in advance how many times a year and where the exhibit?
- I do not do this side of things - where do the exhibition, with whom, where better? .. Yet, thank God, I always suggest my case - to choose. Sometimes, I refuse. It depends on who ask. And even from personal exhibitions. I am only interested in the problems of art. If the proposal is consistent with my ideas - why not make the exhibition? And there are strange proposal, and I would rather give up than consent.

- How do you think, the notorious crisis could affect you, your colleagues, the artistic life of Moscow and Russia?

- I do not know. It primarily affects people with capital, I have no capital. I lived in the Soviet times, then by definition, was a continuous crisis - and nothing has survived and did what he wanted. Probably will be less than an infusion of art, but for the artist is not important. Although the crisis and I was touched: one gallery owners offered to do a solo exhibition, and then, apparently, afraid of the crisis and refused. I'm on it is not angry, he got involved in the organization of exhibitions and knows better than I, do it now or not.

Interviewed by Elena Kalashnikova

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