Morpho

A face enters another species. Colour becomes the first act of transformation.

Morpho begins with a face and moves beyond it. Its form recalls the iridescent blue of Morpho butterflies, whose colour appears to change as light moves across their wings. The piece does not reproduce a species literally. It translates the butterfly into a mask: enlarged eyes, extended antennae and translucent wings turn human features into an imagined insect anatomy.

The mask is formed in plaster and coloured by hand with professional cosmetics originally made for the human face. Makeup leaves the body and becomes material. Pigment, shimmer and shadow are applied to a fixed surface through the visual language Andrés Vondash has developed over more than ten years as a professional makeup artist and visual artist.