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FRIEZE LA 2023


Murmurs presents new work by Ruben Ulises Rodriguez Montoya & Roksana Pirouzmand.







Ruben Ulises Rodriguez Montoya


Ruben Ulises Rodriguez Montoya’s sculptures are chimeras of contemporary mythology. Inspired by the artist’s experience growing up in close proximity to a toxic landfill in New Mexico, Montoya’s creatures are shaped by the detritus of late capitalism that seeps into their bodies, forcing them to adapt into new forms and develop unique powers. Another reference point in Montoya’s work are alebrijes, surreal creatures from oneiric worlds that are manifested in Mexican folk art, often taking the form of many different animals spliced together.

In his presentation for Frieze LA 2023, Montoya imagines a large centaur figure, corrupted by a toxic environment, that guides souls from this world to the afterlife. The smaller sculptures are the nascent “souls” of the creatures, created from found materials such as silicone-drenched clothing and plexiglass shards and sequins that evoke the crystals that form as a cold wind passes through drops of water.

Lil Hell Hawk, 2023

Lil mariachi sombrero from Coyoacán, dragon skin silicone, car parts found passing a dry arroyo, rabbit pelt, black t-shirt, shards of found plexiglass.
14 w x 8 h x 15 d inches


Suite Pour L’invisible by Ana Roxanne, 2023

Lil mariachi sombrero from Coyoacán, dragon skin silicone, car parts found passing a dry arroyo, rabbit pelt, a black t-shirt stained with avocado oil, sequins, shards of found plexiglass
10 w x 18 h x 5 d inches

Mater Lachrymarum, 2023

Blue mariachi sombrero, dragon skin silicone, black t-shirt, zip ties, shards of found plexiglass, horn tips, sequins sewn together while watching The Last of Us, rabbit pelt.

9 w x 18 h x 8.5 d inches
The painting of Remedios Varo where the moon drops a dangling soul into the pensieve, 2023

Blue mariachi sombrero, dragon skin silicone, black t-shirt, zip ties, shards of found plexiglass, horn tips, sequins sewn together while watching The Last of Us, rabbit pelt.
8 w x 14 h x 4 d inches
A being that guides the souls of centaurs into the afterlife, 2023

Claws so big made of splintered horns that they sometimes get tangled in its own flesh that they become ingrown nails, the cannibalized arms of two mutants, the mutated face of a luchador mask, grey sweat pants that show hints of temptation but are now smeared by enchilada sauce, dragon skin silicone, mariachi sombreros from Oaxaca, black cowboy boot, rabbit felt, horn tips, large & small sequins, old tire, car parts from an arroyo by the Rio Grande, sunbleached childs toy, welded wire.

39 w x 80 h x 24 d inches


    Roksana Pirouzmand


The new series of six ceramic wall works by Roksana Pirouzmand entitled I was praying at home while you were dying on the streets, 2022 are psychological spaces representing how Pirouzmand feels as an immigrant living far from her birth country, experiencing the news coming out of Iran of the trauma and civil unrest there especially in the wake of the Mahsa Amini protests. These praying/meditating figures that are piled on top of each other, relying on each others’ bodies for support, evoke a sense of longing for scenes of connection.


I was praying at home while you were dying on the streets (1), 2022

Ceramic
22.25 w x 20.75 h x 0.5 d inches

I was praying at home while you were dying on the streets (2), 2022

Ceramic
22.25 w x 20.75 h x 0.5 d inches

I was praying at home while you were dying on the streets (3), 2022


Ceramic

Left piece: 11.25 w x 8.25 h x 0.5 d inches
Right piece: 10.25 w x 8.25 h x 0.5 d inches
I was praying at home while you were dying on the streets (4), 2022

Ceramic
11.5 w x 9.25 h x 0.5 d inches
I was praying at home while you were dying on the streets (5), 2022

Ceramic
12.75 w x 11.25 h x 0.5 d inches

I was praying at home while you were dying on the streets (6), 2022

Ceramic
14.25 w x 12.75 h x 0.5 d inches

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