Gabriel Rico: The Discipline of the Cave

Collecting fragments of contemporary existence, sculptor and installation artist Gabriel Rico masterfully recontextualizes familiar objects and materials. Working in an Arte Povera tradition, Rico juxtaposes found items, neon, and taxidermy animals in ways that convey the relationship between humans and the natural environment. Influenced by scientific approaches, geometry, and philosophy, the artist creates non-mathematical equations from objects that reflect our fundamental struggle to achieve balance. For his Aspen Art Museum exhibition, Rico has created new work in response to the architecture of the museum’s ground floor galleries. Through his process of fusing the natural and kitsch, the artist creates a careful arrangement that is a portrait of contemporary life.