The Art of Candida Alvarez: How Memory Shapes Form

Candida Alvarez’s exhibition “Circle, Point, Hoop” at El Museo del Barrio takes its title from a 1996 collage-painting by the artist. This piece, a dark blue circle adorned with white string threaded through nails, contrasts with her more recent vibrant, stained-glass-like mosaics of color. The circular form and threading symbolize the interconnectedness of different periods in Alvarez’s artistic journey.

The exhibition, which is Alvarez’s first large-scale museum survey, encompasses nearly fifty years of diverse styles and media. Born in New York City to Puerto Rican parents, her work reflects her Diasporican identity and upbringing in Brooklyn’s Farragut Houses. Alvarez’s art visualizes memory, often teetering on the edge of representation. Early works depict scenes from her childhood, such as observing life through a window in her family’s apartment or adult rituals. “Bolero” (1984) presents a dreamlike atmosphere with a dancing couple in jewel tones, while “Soy (I am) Boricua” (1989) captures a young woman in a window surrounded by swirling colors.

Although organized chronologically, the exhibition is thematically grouped to highlight recurring motifs across her seemingly disparate works. These themes include the atmospheric chiaroscuro of the “John Street” charcoal drawings (1988), the intricate scratched textures in “Stretching, Nesting, Reaching, Feeling” (1992), the vibrant lime-green orbs in “Ramon” (1996), and the mixed-media collages of “The Hybrid Series” (1982).

Throughout her career, Alvarez blurs abstraction and representation, akin to how memories form fleeting images. Her recent show “Real Monsters in Bold Colors” at Gray Gallery (April 30–July 3) emphasized this effect, juxtaposing her work with Bob Thompson’s, where his figurative art highlighted the figurative hints in her abstractions, while her pieces encouraged his figures to shift from representational form.

In her latest work, showcased both at Gray Gallery and El Museo del Barrio, Alvarez transitions from architectural spaces to cartographic ones, illustrating her move to a studio in Michigan. “Partly Cloudy” and “Clear” (2023) feature puzzle-piece-like shapes in calming blues and greens, offering a tranquil contrast to the dynamic energy of her “Air Paintings” (2017–19). Created in response to Hurricane Maria and her father’s passing, these two-sided works on PVC mesh, like “Estoy Bien” (2017), explore themes of resilience amid chaos. Despite their sorrowful origins, these pieces suggest art’s transformative power, underscoring Alvarez’s statement: “I use personal knowledge to build magical dimensions.”

“Circle, Point, Hoop” is on view at El Museo del Barrio in East Harlem, Manhattan, through August 3, curated by Rodrigo Moura, Zuna Maza, and Alexia Arrizurieta.