Residency at the Studio Museum in Harlem / Residencia en Studio Museum in Harlem (1980 – 1981)

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David Hammons, Jorge Luis Rodriguez and Charles Abramson

Installation at the Studio Museum in Harlem / Instalacion en el Studio Museum in Harlem (1981) Mixed media / tecnica mixta

In 1980, Jorge Luis began an artist residency at the Studio Museum in Harlem, which was then led by Executive Director Mary Schmidt Campbell. He, along with fellow artists-in- residence, Charles Abramson (1945-1988) and David Hammons (b. 1943), were provided with studio space for the duration of the residency, which concluded in an exhibition the following year. This large-scale installation was a collaborative effort between the three artists. Found materials were culled from the streets of Harlem and a mosaic factory that had recently closed. Furniture was also borrowed from nearby thrift shops. Jorge Luis contributed other work to the installation, including a series of wall reliefs. The motif of Japanese and Chinese art influences, as with previous work, can still be seen in his output during this period. The group exhibition was reviewed favorably by several media outlets, including the New York Times, Soho News, and Village Voice.

En 1980, Jorge Luis comenzo una residencia de arte en el Studio Museum in Harlem, en aquel entonces dirigido por la directora ejecutiva Mary Schmidt Campbell. El, junto a Charles Abramson (1945-1988) y David Hammons (1945-), tambien artistas en residencia, recibieron un espacio de estudio que concluyo en una exhibicion al año siguiente.

Esta instalacion de gran escala fue una colaboracion entre los tres artistas. Se usaron materiales encontrados en las calles de Harlem y una fabrica de mosaicos que habia cerrado recientemente. Tambien se prestaron muebles de tiendas de segunda mano cercanas. Jorge Luis tambien aporto otros trabajos a la instalacion, incluyendo una serie de relieves en la pared. El tema de las influencias del arte japones y chino, como en trabajos anteriores, puede verse todavia en su produccion durante este periodo. La exposicion colectiva tuvo resenas favorables en varios medios, incluyendo el New York Times, Soho News y el Village Voice.

Sculpture with Three Balls / Escultura con tres bolas

Sculpture with Three Balls is an abstract, minimalist representation of the close bond Jorge Luis, Charles Abramson, and David Hammons shared over the course of their artist residency. It is also a reference to traditional Japanese wrapping technique, which had been popularized by a bestselling book series at the time. A photo of five eggs packaged using this technique is shown on the cover. The steel pipe, found on a street in Harlem, acts as a cradle for the cast plaster balls, which represent the intimate setting of the studio space shared by the three artists.

Escultura con tres bolas es una representacion abstracta y minimalista del estrecho vinculo que Jorge Luis, Charles Abramson y David Hammons compartieron durante el transcurso de su residencia artistica. Tambien es una referencia a la tecnica de envoltura tradicional japonesa, que habia sido popularizada por una serie de libros de mayor exito en ese momento. Una foto de cinco huevos envasados usando esta tecnica se muestra en la cubierta. El tubo de acero, encontrado una calle en Harlem, sirve de cuna para las bolas de yeso fundido, que representan el ambiente intimo del estudio compartido por los tres artistas.