Mexican artist Abraham Cruzvillegas creates his ‘autoconstrucción’ installations through a process of improvisation out of an eclectic variety of materials. Previous works have included wood, plastics, human hair, glass, screws, plants, ceramic, bone, cement, feathers.
Autoconstrucción loosely translated means ‘self-constructing’ and is a reference to the building methods used in his home town of Ajusco on the outskirts of Mexico City where he continues to live and work. In the 1960s many people moved from the countryside towards the city, forming their own communities and makeshift homes out of whatever materials they could afford and upon what was thought to be uninhabitable volcanic land.
Cruzvillegas created a new artwork for the Turbine Hall incorporating his signature principles of autoconstrucción. Empty Lot consists of discarded materials from various London construction-sites built into the structure of the installation. On the top platform of the piece triangular planters containing soil from parks and green spaces all over London lie in a graphic almost geometric pattern. The planters are lit by lamps and watered every day, creating the optimum environment for something to potentially grow.
Abraham Cruzvillegas – Empty Lot
The Mexican artist introduces the 2015 Hyundai Commission for the Turbine Hall
