Year: 2017
Medium: neon lights, aluminum box, mirror, one-way mirror and electric energy
Dimensions: 121.9 x 121.9 x 25.4 cm (48 x 48 x 10 in.)
Acquired from Christie's, 2022
Navarro’s work does not conceal its critical stance. While referring to American Minimalism, such as that of Dan Flavin and Donald Judd, Navarro makes it clear that he does not mean to pay homage or show a sense of belonging to their ideas but rather overturn them. For Navarro, who was born and raised in Chile under the socialist dictatorship during the Cold War, American Minimalism of the time is an ideological symbol that was the ultimate cause leading the crisis in Chile. In the square screen of this work, the phrase “Back to Square One” is illuminated along each side. The work has a mirror at the back and a one-way mirror on the surface. With the two mirrors facing each other, the neon light in the middle is repeated in multiple layers while shrinking to the limit of reflectivity. The similarity of this composition of repeating squares is reminiscent of the expression of Josef Albers. Within the minimalist format, which avoids as much as possible the illusion and decoration, depiction of emotions, and subjective statements like political messages, Navarro dares to go to extreme lengths to insert emotion and politics into the words. Although Navarro is now based in the United States, his memories and experiences of being unreasonably inhibited and controlled, along with the many sacrifices he made, are inseparably interwoven with the history of Chile. “Back to Square One” is an idiom that means to go back to the start. Whether it is a wish, a warning, or a cry of despair, this is a work that should be appreciated by imagining the emotions Navarro embedded in this phrase.
