Planetarische Bauern

The work by the artist Edgardo Navarro (born 1977 in San Luis Potosí, Mexico; lives in Paris) draws on Latin American liberation theology. This movement within the Latin American Catholic Church centres on the ‘liberation of the oppressed’. It gave rise to grassroots ecclesial communities campaigning for land reform, labour rights and democratic governance. Like the German peasant revolts, they were inspired by readings of the Gospels that saw the spiritual realm as inseparable from revolutionary action.

The mandala is made of earth collected in Mexico and around Halle, mixed with pigments from naturally clay-rich soils in various colours. Small tempera paintings on paper and an oil painting incorporating soil enter into a complementary dialogue. By combining Indigenous imagery with notions of social interdependence, the works evoke a planetary condition – one in which spirituality and politics must find a way to coexist. A single grain of salt from Halle has also been added.