01/31/2024
RENÉ PEÑA
Photography on Cotton Paper
About the self-portrait.
‘Whenever I use my body as a support, it is with the idea of talking about issues related to society and that concern many or everyone. I do not even intend to create portraits of the individuals that make it up, rather they are comments about it, and always with the certainty that I am also part of the whole.
The central issue of my photographic series is the relationship established between individuals and institutions (family, education, political parties, religion ...). I also pay attention to the contradiction that is created when we try to preserve our individuality while having to deal with our status as social entities.
The term self-portrait has always seemed suspicious to me because it can make us believe that there is a version without omissions, more truthful, than the one others might have. There may be no more distorted image about someone than the one created by themselves.’
René Peña Nov. 2015