Rodrigo Valenzuela: Marginal

Rodrigo Valenzuela’s practice combines photography, collage, painting, installation, and video within densely constructed scenes that are open to myriad interpretations. Drawing from personal history, political narratives, and art historical references, his works often stage objects in environments that posit ideas related to post-capitalism, the plight of workers, and the concerns of marginalized communities. Valenzuela’s images further challenge viewers to reconsider the narratives that illustrate official histories and photography’s simultaneous role as an arbiter of truth and a purveyor of lies. 

In Weapons (2022-2023), the artist reconfigures crude tools and bladed armaments into quasi-ceremonial and sometimes zoomorphic forms. Sculptures made for the camera, Valenzuela’s weapons are built, like in many of his series, from construction detritus, implying the weaponization of utilitarian objects for a potential pitchfork revolution. Three large-format works from the series, each 60 x 96 inches, are composed of meticulously collaged factory time-cards on canvas, upon which his photographs are screen-printed.

Barricades (2017) from the series General Song, a reference to fellow countryman Pablo Neruda’s monumental poem, engage with histories of struggle in the Americas, reimagining political and protest iconography through a construction of industrial materials in stark formal arrangements. In Masks (2018), Valenzuela assembles haunting, enigmatic portraits of figures wearing rudimentary gas masks constructed from discarded debris, evoking the need for protection and perhaps anonymity, by any means necessary. 

Combined, the three series create a tableau of resistance, united by their use of materials available to the proletariat during a time of oppressive control, such as tires, scrap metal, chains, and two-by-fours. In the gallery’s darkened back room, a video installation of Prole (2015) connects more recent works to an earlier focus on the role of labor unions and the instability of workers in a post-labor economy. The presentation comes at a time of heightened political tension around the world, exacerbated by rapid shifts in traditional economies and the prevalence of authoritarian regimes, highlighting the timely significance of Valenzuela’s voice. 

Rodrigo Valenzuela (b. 1982, Santiago, Chile) studied art history and photography before immigrating to the United States, where he earned his MFA at the University of Washington. His work has been exhibited internationally, including solo presentations at the New Museum, New York; Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, Santiago; and Orange County Museum of Art, among others. The artist is based in Los Angeles, California, and is an associate professor in the Department of Art at UCLA.

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