Pedro Reyes has acquired international renown for his big scale projects about current political and social issues. He mainly does sculpture, but also draws and does performance.His work at El Ganzo was made entirely with charcoal, a basic and primitive material with which cavemen drew their caverns, therefore considered to be the very first artists in Reyes opinion. He got inspiration from what he was reading during his stay, Greek philosophy and mythology. In his bedroom he used the walls like a sketch book, covering them with drawings honoring ancient and current philosophers.
Pedro arrived at El Ganzo with specific intentions, armed with cardboard for initial sketches and an eagerness to fill the expansive walls of his residency room with drawings. The environment became a dynamic canvas, an "open notebook" where he could freely explore and iterate. He engaged in what he described as "action drawing," a vigorous, explorative process that allowed him to experiment and refine his portrayals of various historical figures. Notably, he repeatedly sketched figures such as Henry David Thoreau and Noam Chomsky, using the walls to perfect his technique and conceptualize a puppet of Chomsky.The choice of figures like Thoreau and Chomsky was deeply intentional. Reyes is drawn to personalities who provide philosophical insights—tools for living, understanding the world, and addressing social issues. These figures, including the ancient philosopher Hypatia and other Greek thinkers, were not just subjects of artistic representation but were also integral to Reyes's intellectual and ethical framework. By drawing these figures, Reyes engaged in an act of indexing—each sketch a reminder and a reflection of the ideas contained within his extensive readings in philosophy.
For a long time El Ganzo had been trying to arrange a visit. It was delayed several times because of our other commitments. But finally we found a window to go and it was a treat because we were given this humungous room, it is like... you could skate in it. Obviously it was very enjoyable, you know, for the four of us – me, my wife and my kids to be there. Perfect combination of work and leisure, which for me is like, really I enjoy so much what I do that I suffer if I am not able to work. It is very hard for me to have a holiday. Thats why I like very much El Ganzo because I could work. Basically doing doodles on the wall of the room. For me, it doesn't get better than that. (laughs)
It was a very good time because I was preparing a show that I had in New York where I presented 130 drawings on the walls and that residency in El Ganzo was sort of a warm up towards that exhibition. And I even brought with me some cardboard where I made some drawings that I showed in New York. Also the walls of the room where I was, there were so many that I could fill with drawings that it was almost like action drawing or action paintings. For instance, there were some rooms where I was trying to do drawings of these historical figures. I think there is a wall where there are like 30 faces and I was trying to draw Thoreau, Henry David Thoreau and I did it over and over again in the same wall. And I also did another, a drawing of Chomsky, Noam Chomsky because I was figuring out how to do a puppet of Noam Chomsky so I had this wall as a sort of an open notebook. So, the work was not casual or non-directed, it was on a preparation for a very specific deadline that I had and it was like a good thing because I needed to reconnect with my drawing skills because I had drawn all my life but I had stopped drawing or I hadn't drawn in that kind or I have never exhibited drawings. My drawings were usually technical drawings to exhibit something or basically a design tool rather than a goal in itself.
There are some characters or historical figures in that room that, for example, Hypatia and some Greek philosophers that are on top of the wall, these are people that I read and I get inspiration and my tools for living from. Thats what philosophy does, it gives you tools to understand the world or to be more happy or deal with social issues. So, drawing is a sort of indexing. In a way it is a way to remind you of the stuff that is in the books. Usually I try to fill the gaps that I have or get acquainted with the history of thought. It is kind of endless quest, those were just some fumes, the greeks and some few western figures not from the modern times. It is not that there is much more than that, this is what I was working with in my mind when I was there.
I think it is a beautiful concept that has to do with place- making. The fact that you have artist staying and leaving some sort of trace of their stay is a concept that has a huge potential. This is the best you can do instead of having a standardized design which can be very good but just having the diversity of artists doing interventions is not only very enjoyable for the artists but also very enjoyable for the guests that live in the hotel. There is all this other dimension that has to do with the recording studio, with the live acts that happen there. So it is something that is not only beautiful in its artistic dimension but also in its human dimension because it has something to do with friendship.
I think that art having a value is a positive thing. In Mexico, we had this whole tradition of Muralism etc. and every cent that the Mexican government spent back in the day in asking painters to paint the walls has brought back to the country thousand times or million times more than what the investment was. And if you invest in culture, in art, its something that is always a lasting investment.
I hope this continues, you know, this legacy. There is something that, I think, it would have been Pablo's dream that it continues on with the same philosophy even if he is not physically present, he can be spiritually present by having this project alive.
