alexandre arrechea

Between 1991 and 2003, Alexandre Arrechea (b. 1970, Trinidad, Cuba) was part of a collective of cuban artists named Los Carpinteros, along with Marco Castillo and Dagoberto Rodríguez Sánchez. The group was best known for its play on dichotomies  –the artists would depart from the idea of reproducing a common, everyday object, with perfect craftsmanship but would structure it differently, oddly and imperfectly, inevitably forcing a reformulation, or re-reading of a traditional object. After leaving the group, Arrechea began to address current political issues more directly, giving his sensibility and attention to contemporary culture the center stage. 

Arreachea's work is also remarkable in its interdisciplinary and inclusive nature, often creating pieces such as large installation works in museums or commissions for public spaces that invite the viewer to participate and physically engage with the works. The artist also encourages more traditional contemplation through his sculptures or graphite and watercolour works on paper. Either way, his production is always intricately tied to the space or context it occupies, and systematically demonstrates a preoccupation for the socio-political environment in which the work is to be inserted. Arrechea's work positions itself between what is individual and collective, between the public and the private. In investigating this space, the artist addresses social norms and group behaviors, engaging with socio-economics, races and urbanism as a means of understanding both personal identities and mass experiences. 

Alexandre Arrechea lives and works in New York, USA. Recent solo exhibitions and projects include: Corners, at Galeria Nara Roesler, in New York (2019), USA; Higienopolis, at Casado Santapau Gallery (2018), in Madrid, Spain; Uninhabited Order, at Fredric Snitzer Gallery, in Miami (2018), USA; La seducción del fragmento, at Palacio de Molina (2017), in Cartagena, Spain, and Jerarquias Negadas, at Galeria Habana (2016), in Havana, Cuba. Recent group exhibitions include: Obsesiones y acumulaciones: el gabinete del artista, at Estudio Figueroa-Vives and the Norwegian Embassy in Cuba (2019), in Havana, Cuba; The World’s Game: Fútbol and Contemporary Art, at Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM), in Miami (2018), USA; Construções sensíveis, at Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil (CCBB-RJ) (2018), in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Adiós Utopia: Dreams and Deceptions in Cuban Art since 1950, at the Walker Art Center (2017), in Minneapolis, and at the Museum of Fine Arts (2017), in Houston, USA; Without masks: Contemporary Afro – Cuban Art, at Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de La Habana (2017), in Havana, Cuba. His works are part of important public collections, such as: Daros Collection, Zurich, Switzerland; Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), Los Angeles, USA; Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York, USA; Museo del Barrio, New York, USA; Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía (MNCARS), Madrid, Spain.