Pilar Mehlis
“I believe narrowing the scope of an artist can reveal whether their art practice is about production and repetition, or if it gives way to discovery, and evolution, ultimately uncovering what might just be an original thought.”
— Sandra Botnen
“The time I spent alone with these creatures was very personal. It brought me to my knees”
Day four introduces painter-sculptor Pilar Mehlis. I fell for Pilar’s work this past December when she was nominated for the Union House Artist of the Month. It was her second nomination. In August she submitted two playful, found-object, art pieces – a helmet and a Croc (yes, a gardening shoe) both with attached wings. I was interested in Pilar as an artist for showing stylistic continuity and dedication to a particular theme, namely the juxtaposition of human and animal forms, often portraying them as hybrid, mythological beings with wings. As an art buyer, it is exciting to follow an artist over time, and I find it reassuring when a career gains momentum around specific subject matter or themes they have grappled with over a long period. I believe narrowing the scope of an artist can reveal whether their art practice is about production and repetition, or if it gives way to discovery, and evolution, ultimately uncovering what might just be an original thought.
At first, I did not give the winged objects much of my attention, but they were memorable. Then four months later, her half-human, half-bird, kneeling sculpture had me captivated. I knew I wanted one and decided to give her a call. Here is what came up.
Pilar Mehlis was born in Bolivia and immigrated to Canada. Having just spoken to Robert Chaplin (Day 2) and Serge Ben Nathan (day 3) about the importance of illustration in their work, I thought I would ask the same of Pilar. I sensed an expression of embodiment in her work, so I expected a different answer.
Prior to Covid 19, Pilar was preparing for a solo show in Bolivia. Her drawings were well executed and concept clear. She had agreed to present 28 cast figures and was already working on their molds. Her attention was focused on production in order to create the 28 figures on schedule, but when the show was cancelled due to the pandemic, she was left with her molds ready to go, but no show, and no pressure to create. She went back to the studio nonetheless, but instead of speeding up production, she slowed it down. Her work with the figures become more personal, modelling them after a migratory bird that moves between Bolivia and Canada. “The time I spent alone with these creatures was very personal. It brought me to my knees”, she said. Rather than producing a series of multiples, each sculpture became a unique experience. As a result, her work speaks of transformation. More that illustrating an evolutionary process, she was in the midst of one. From my perspective, the work she produced in 2020 is a testament to spiritual strength, for her it seems it was about trust, which she underscores by adding it to the title of her piece, Passirin -Trust.
I love her work more by the minute. Relating her contemporary pieces back to her studies of Renaissance Art actually triggers within me a precious memory. I suddenly recall standing before Michelangelo’s Pieta, how it actually brought me to my knees, and tears to my eyes - a beautiful memory full of hope, despair, transformation and I dare say, the Holy Spirit. Attached to this memory is my recollection of a nearby art historian who I could overhear describing art as mainly “artifacts of perversion”. Only the rare example of art caused what she called “an aesthetic arrest”. Listening to Pilar Mehlis speak about 2020, the year she spent alone in her art studio, I feel the energy of being brought to one’s knees, “arrested”, and yet at the same time, wings unfurl in preparation for flight. For me this speaks to the depths of beauty, not as decoration, but as a real-life force and source of renewal. What an appropriate gift for my home at the beginning of a new year where hopes of a vaccination and newly restored life is on the horizon.
As it turns out, I am not the only one drawn to this piece. She produced four of the sculptures for the East Side Culture Crawl, sold them all and has waiting list to produce more. Originally cast in polymer and bronze powder, she is now casting a new series in all bronze. I promised myself not to make a decision until the end of the month after I have looked at thirty different artists, but I am thinking regardless, I should get my name on the waiting list.