Rafael Carmona

RAFAEL CARMONA (Granada, 1949).
"The scream", 1972.
Oil and matter on canvas.
Signed and dated.
Measurements: 100 × 81 cm.

Rafael Carmona builds an image of strong expressive charge from a dense, rough and almost mural surface. The composition is dominated by a large grayish form, of reticulated texture and organic appearance, which expands on the canvas as a monumental presence. In the upper area emerges an open hand, the only recognizable figurative element, which introduces a dramatic and symbolic reading.

The pictorial matter acquires a fundamental role here: it not only defines the form, but also generates relief, tension and physicality. The incisions, cracks and wefts of the surface suggest an eroded skin, a wall or a structure under pressure, reinforcing the meaning of the title. The scream is not represented in a literal way, but as a stopped gesture, as a bodily trace and as tension contained in the material itself. The work is inscribed in a sensibility close to material informalism and expressionist gestural painting, where the support becomes a field of energy and conflict.