'Mariano Chavez's universe is populated with trolls, grotesquely gigantic breasts, flowers and cavemen. Certainly there’s a John Waters plot in there somewhere. If it’s inappropriate and embarrassing, chances are that Chavez has captured it. Even bouquets of flowers rendered in pastel seem suspect in the context of Chavez's body of work-- a world of cartoonish ugliness and proud despair...
'Chavez's canvases often scratch at something taboo, although it’s not quite certain what exactly might be the nasty bit. Some are sexually suggestive, while others are racially charged; it’s not clear how or why these might offend, yet they do. Chavez isn’t to blame for creating this nastiness. His collage process pulls images from varied sources, from mass culture to ethnographic surveys. If the art is disgusting, it’s only because that’s what is available.'
Jason Foumberg New City
'Wanting stuff he hates is at the root of much of Chavez's work. The creation of his books, for example, stems from a desire for the detestable, a fascination with the fearful, and a delight in the dirty. He talks about the evolution of TROLL/Dirty Flowers, a collection of stark, unsettling ink drawings that are at once comical and horrific. This book's pages feature bloodletting logs protruding from inverted ponds, freakish gorillas in a primordial hunting scene, disembodied shark maws hovering like parodies of the Cheshire Cat's grin, and ghoulish troll heads sprouting flowers from gaping pores. Chavez revisits these themes through a constantly evolving narrative of obsession.'
Jeremy Biles
'Chavez's canvases often scratch at something taboo, although it’s not quite certain what exactly might be the nasty bit. Some are sexually suggestive, while others are racially charged; it’s not clear how or why these might offend, yet they do. Chavez isn’t to blame for creating this nastiness. His collage process pulls images from varied sources, from mass culture to ethnographic surveys. If the art is disgusting, it’s only because that’s what is available.'
Jason Foumberg New City
'Wanting stuff he hates is at the root of much of Chavez's work. The creation of his books, for example, stems from a desire for the detestable, a fascination with the fearful, and a delight in the dirty. He talks about the evolution of TROLL/Dirty Flowers, a collection of stark, unsettling ink drawings that are at once comical and horrific. This book's pages feature bloodletting logs protruding from inverted ponds, freakish gorillas in a primordial hunting scene, disembodied shark maws hovering like parodies of the Cheshire Cat's grin, and ghoulish troll heads sprouting flowers from gaping pores. Chavez revisits these themes through a constantly evolving narrative of obsession.'
Jeremy Biles
