Descrição
This study revises key concepts arranged around alchemy and magic in contemporary art focusing on two primary sources –artworks and artists- as it opens up to a cross-sectorial method which embraces emerging theories in the field of New Materialism. Taking Joseph Beuys and Elena del Rivero’s artworks as case studies, the healing process is analyzed dissecting the particular qualities of vibrant matter. Through magic and alchemy, the perfomative and fluid character of materials is acknowledged, as well as their agentic nature and the manner in which materials-in-movement are transformed into healing forces. Beuys and del Rivero’s artworks exemplify the material properties of gold and its healing potentialities, both spiritual and material.||Esta investigación revisa los conceptos dispuestos hasta ahora en torno a la alquimia y a la magia centrándose en dos fuentes primarias del arte contemporáneo —las obras y los artistas— a la vez que se abre al método transdisciplinar para integrar teorías emergentes en el ámbito de los Nuevos Materialismos. Tomando como modelo de estudio un artista clave de la segunda mitad del siglo XX, Joseph Beuys, y una artista contemporánea, Elena del Rivero, se diseccionan las cualidades de la materia viva para analizar el proceso de sanación. A través de la alquimia y la magia, se reconoce el carácter performativo y fluido de los materiales, poniendo el foco en los materiales-en-movimiento y la capacidad agencial del material mientras se transforma en una fuerza curativa. Así, las obras de Joseph Beuys y Elena del Rivero ejemplifican las propiedades materiales del oro y sus potencialidades en la sanación, tanto espiritual como material. This study revises key concepts arranged around alchemy and magic in contemporary art focusing on two primary sources –artworks and artists- as it opens up to a cross-sectorial method which embraces emerging theories in the field of New Materialism. Taking Joseph Beuys and Elena del Rivero’s artworks as case studies, the healing process is analyzed dissecting the particular qualities of vibrant matter. Through magic and alchemy, the perfomative and fluid character of materials is acknowledged, as well as their agentic nature and the manner in which materials-in-movement are transformed into healing forces. Beuys and del Rivero’s artworks exemplify the material properties of gold and its healing potentialities, both spiritual and material.
