“Cry Me a River,” the current installation at the Ani Molnár Galéria, as a participant in the ongoing Budapest Photo Festival, gives the viewer a lot to think about. Not because it’s inscrutably abstract, but because, while it entertains you, it also carries a secret truth that’s staring you in the eye. Literally. Eyes are everywhere in Aires’ works.
Aires’ shiny vision of truth is a fascinating amalgam of pop culture references, politics, and money. They suggest another understanding of how the world works. The eight works displayed in “Cry Me a River” borrow the American tune title to illustrate his points in an oblique, but smile-inducing manner.
“Reflections in a Golden Eye,” the title of a novel and a 1967 Hollywood film, is a wall display of many gravure portraits of people who appear on paper money (bank notes) from around the world. “Many people don’t know that it is forbidden to rip or cut a bank note,” Aires explained during the exhibit’s opening on 13 April. The enlarged cut-outs show the eyes of historical figures, monarchs, and key political figures, including Benjamin Franklin, Queen Elizabeth II, Sigmund Freud, and Giuseppe Verdi. Together, they become the “all-seeing eye” with which the artist interprets the cultural role of money.
“You know, it’s actually a loan!” he points out. “We forget that this piece of paper, [though it represents a specific value] is often related to any disaster in the world. It’s only a piece of paper; you think you own it, but it’s never yours. The whole idea is absurd. It’s totally surreal.” Digging a little further, it’s easy to see that this work mirrors the basis of the film’s plot: hidden agendas. Therefore, global capitalism can be perceived as based on an ephemeral concept that deceives the borrower of the note.
The Eurythmics’ 80s hit “Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This” is the title of an eye-catching video that intersects music and Spain’s 2015 political upheaval when a gag law was passed that forbade the police to show their identities, and made it illegal to rent a police costume, or to film police officers. The video follows two male police officers in full uniform, wearing headgear that only reveals their eyes, as they dance a tango in a golden Baroque palace. The camera’s close angles generate hot socio-political and sexual overtones that speak to power, freedom, secrets, and the public-private narrative.
For Aires, working with archival materials like printed money brings up other questions for him: “Who are the national heroes? Who selects them, and why are there so few women? You can study the entire history of a country through its bank notes,” he exclaims. As a result, he created a project in 2019 in which a massive mint engraving of the face of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom is the first of a series called “Love Songs For a Time of Crisis.” The Queen is encased in a three-dimensional glass wall piece that has hidden layers within.
“I enlarged her portrait, and then introduced the trompe l’oeil that says ‘you lie to the eye,’ he explains. “This technique has been used in art for many centuries. Hidden in there is the full text of the Queen song ‘I Want To Break Free,’” which is also the title of the piece. The semi-visible lyrics are anchored with pins – a direct reference to taxidermy. “The idea is this: when you are moving around in front of the piece the text disappears, but when you get closer you can clearly read the full lyrics of the song. The text is the second layer—it’s very subtle.”
The effect is a stunning exegesis on royalty, wealth, colonialism, and symbolism. “With the eyes from the bank notes watching you, it’s as if the new god of the century is the money,” he says. “You can see your reflection when you’re in front of the piece. You are part of it. It’s mirroring you.”
- Budapest Photo Festival continues through 8 May.
- “Cry Me a River” at Ani Molnár Galeria continues through 11 June.