Isaac Cordal

Isaac Cordal

By Arden de Raaij

Recently we got Untitled pt III in our mailbox, and as you can see from the review, we were very happy with it. Two very memerable works in the book are to be found on the first and last page, made by Isaac Cordal. These small cement figures, perfectly placed and composed grab the attention right away. You can imagine that we were delighted to get an e-mail from Isaac with some of his work. We learned that the series of cement figures is called Cement Eclipse, and that there is plenty of thought behind it. Enough reasons to ask him about some questions.

“I believe that urban art enriches city streets. A day working on one of my photos I discovered the true heritage that surround us.”

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal

How would you describe yourself?

Wow, this is a difficult question to start!. I am from northwestern Spain, a beautiful place named Galicia. Recently I moved from London to Brussels. I’ve been interested in art since my teens. I studied sculpture at various schools and I am interested in the representation of the human being. I am not made of cement but I’m quite small.

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal

“… reflecting of everyday situations in which human beings seem surprised of what they have created around them”

What made you want to do the Cement Eclipse series?

I wanted to do something in the street. I had made concrete sculptures since 2001, but they were large and very heavy. With this format I always needed transportation to move them to carry from one place to another. I wanted to do something very easy to move and take it everywhere with me. Small figures allow me to go anywhere. The title of Cement eclipses comes from the idea of buildings creating eclipses when the sun sets behind them. Cement eclipses has a poetic background in which tiny figures become survivors, as an anachronism archaeological remains reflecting of everyday situations in which human beings seem surprised of what they have created around them. This series of pictures and sculptures attempts to reflect on the absurdity of many of our actions.

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal - Cement eclipses
Isaac Cordal – Cement eclipses

The cement eclipses project is very well perceived and is part of the book Untitled III which also has very kind words on your work. Had you expect this?

I am glad that Cement eclipses appeared in Untitled III. It´s a very nice book!. I am very grateful for the words written there about my work. I met Gary Shove a few months ago and I’m going to publish a solo book with him in Carpet Bombing Culture next year. We are currently working on the layout. I think it’s a great opportunity to let more people know the project.

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal

What made/makes you want to work out on the streets?

The public space is a wonderful free scene. We should be able to participate in the decoration. It is a silent witness to the passage of time and to identity of the people who inhabit it. The street offers amazing spaces that are very difficult to  extract for display in a gallery. They are unique and a commonplace which the citizen becomes a spectator very easily. I believe that urban art enriches city streets. A day working on one of my photos I discovered the true heritage that surround us. I had a small sculpture of a man sitting on the edge of a large hole in the asphalt. The big gap was caused by council workers trying to fix the road. The place was fully fenced. A woman approached and asked me if that figure was mine. I replied yes. And for my surprise she also asked me if I had made that big hole. I thought about what lucky I was, I need a hole and I have got it for free. Without any effort.

The places where I put my pieces are very important. I could say more: the place is more important than the small sculptures.

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal

Could you tell us a bit about ALG-A .org?

Alg-a is a community of art and free action from Galicia. It was created in 2004 as a virtual space to interact and share information. Now there is also a physical space in which people of different backgrounds organize activities related with creation, art, activism, etc. As I am outside the region I work closer to the virtual part of Alg-a. I usually write news in the web site and I co-manage the alg-a net label: an online record label dedicated to experimental audio where you can download the albums freely under creative commons license. We have released 55 albums to date. There is also a virtual gallery where we publish graphic works of people we like.

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal

You also do quite a lot with Audio, could you tell us what things and where this interest comes from?

I was interested in Death Metal and Grind Core music in the nineties. I played guitar in a band called Dismal. We used to make fanzines in the old school style with photocopies, scissors, glue, etc. We had a great time. When I bought my first computer I was immersed wasting time making music. It’s not very healthy!

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal

Is there anything you’d like to achieve with your art?

I just would like people to see the small sculptures that reflects our behavior as social mass. It’s a critical and ironic reflection of our evolution and social relations. We’ ve created a world full of contrasts. We´ve turned the city into our natural habitat and we’ve become part of it´s street furniture. It seems to be that nature has become how we see it out of the window when we travel from one city to another.

A few people told me that Cement Eclipses is a sad world’s point of view. However, from my opinion, I consider that it has enough doses of positivism. Our life situation is absurd at some times and many of the situation that I created are equally absurd.

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal

What can we expect from you in the future?

I will continue making small sculptures and photographs on the streets in all cities and places I could possible go. I also want to participate in some shows. I’m currenly looking for some spaces.

I have to think very seriously about how to pay the bills and improve my English too.

Isaac Cordal
Isaac Cordal