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Gonzalo Fuenmayor
Carmen Imperial, 2013
Charcoal on paper
Gift of Friends of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Columbian born Gonzalo Fuenmayor combines familiar symbols of Latin America with those of Europe, melding jungle flora and fauna with ornate decorative objects. Unexpected combinations reference the cultural clash between the two regions and “magical
realism”- a blend of the fantastic and the mundane.
In Carmen Imperial, a towering headdress features a mythical pairing of opulent flowers and fruit, tropical birds and a crustacean. Carmen Miranda, the exuberant Brazilian entertainer, is the inspiration for this remarkable charcoal drawing.
In 2004, Fuenmayor earned a BFA from the School of Visual Arts, New York and a MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (SMFA). He has exhibited throughout North and South America, and is the recipient of numerous awards including the SMFA’s
prestigious Traveling Fellowship. Gonzalo Fuenmayor: Tropical Mythologies, the artist’s recent solo exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, was a compilation of work completed during his fellowship.
Carmen Imperial can be viewed in the Longwood Center.