• CV

From a western world perspective, it seems the “Livin’ is easy” and we pretend to not have a care in the world. But just under the surface - or in Carlos Aires’ works, one could argue “the other side of the coin” - we find crisis, unhealthy power structures and all the things we want to forget about. In video, installation, collage and objects Carlos Aires confronts us with the ambiguity of our world order and the constant presence of money, be it specifically as in collages made of original banknotes or abstract as symbols of dreams, power and in the end, a both moral and physical decay. The contrast between the state and the individual, between reality and dream and between richer and poorer is the overall topic. Carlos Aires juxtaposes banknotes with silhouettes and photos taken from mass media and his works point out power structures and the relation between the state - the banknote being the ultimate symbol of a state - and the citizen, who rebelling against or sufferering from that same society. As Carlos Aires has stated, “(…) Money is the only link between all catastrophes and disasters and they are generated by humans, including many of the seemingly natural ones. (….)”

By destroying the original bank notes Carlos Aires punctures the strongest symbols of national states and he even questions the value of his own work and the market it is set of to take part in. Wrapped around the words of pop songs and showing off their attractive vivid colors, the finely cut banknotes of Carlos Aires’ works lure us in and confront us with the machiavellian nature of our time.

Please contact SPECTA for available works!