MASP

Inspired by Mexican folk art and realism, Hulda Guzmán’s paintings almost always display an intense and vibrant palette. Her compositions frequently combine the tropical landscapes of her native Santo Domingo with interiors containing abstract geometric backgrounds, across which figures interact in open-air revelry and dance or in sexual trysts between couples or groups. Trustful Surrender was commissioned by MASP for the Histories of Sexuality (2017) exhibition, and follows Guzmán’s recent line of approach and interest in representing erotic scenes. The painting presents an abstract space reminiscent of modernist architecture, with a concourse cornered with columns. A couple lies entwined at the center of this space, surrounded by grinning, lascivious devils, a good-humored take on the sexualized and decadent hell-like scenes by Hieronymus Bosch (1450–1516), including The Garden of Earthly Delights (1503–1515) or MASP’s own The Temptations of St. Anthony (circa 1500). Injecting a further dose of fantasy, a long, green, apparently female hand invades the scene, contrasting with the fiery colors, and touches the central couple, seemingly oblivious to the surrounding hell. With its precise and refined design and multicolored palette, the painting is full of humor, poetry, and fantasy

— Adriano Pedrosa; Camila Bechelany, 2018

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