Artist in residence: Mario M. Martínez
Recreation of the cigüa, an amulet of Asturian origin, in an installation project.
Project: Agüeyo
The cigüa is a pre-Christian amulet against the evil eye in the shape of a closed fist, leaving between the index and middle fingers. Despite having lost its ancestral connection, this figure is still fully integrated in popular culture as it is still common as a gift for newborns from a close relative. If it breaks, it means that it has saved the person carrying it from a major spell, and it is said that it only works if it has been a gift or the result of a robbery.
Another tradition deeply rooted in the Asturian idiosyncrasy in the resilience that, for better or worse, hangs around our necks, very close to our chest. An acceptance of one's own condition forged by chaining one crisis after another and that has a double function: it sustains us in the face of adversity but carries us forward.
During the residency at LABoral, Mario M. Martínez will investigate these concepts (evil eye, resilience...) to express them in an installation. Using different materials such as steel, resin and other metals, he will create his own cigüa in Agüeyo, accompanied by an animated text.
Project selected in the I Call for Artistic Residencies 2023.
Activity financed and promoted by Regional Ministry of Culture, Language Policy and Tourism.
