"All the world's a stage...And one man in his time plays many parts." Shakespeare may have said it, but Monica Aissa Martinez painted it. Martinez's collection of paintings at the Burton Barr Central library gallery is, in fact, titled, "The World Stage, a play in finite acts. "My sensibility is deliberately whimsical and playful," Martinez says as she informs her listeners that the work presented deals with the seven deadly sins and the four cardinal virtues. She goes on to explain that the work was the result of her concern about the sad state of human affairs, she has witnessed over the last few years. The sins of the world weighed heavily on her mind. She wondered if there was any peace, good or reason left in the world. She turned to religious researching. Her research into the seven deadly sins and the four cardinal virtues led her to do a series of drawings and paintings where each of the sins and virtues are depicted as individuals. "The world is indeed a play. We can play one character, then switch midway and play another or play all of them if we are so inclined," Martinez explains. She says that the goal of this series is to lightheartedly incite awareness and choice. Because her work is whimsical, the audience for Martinez's playful painting of sins and virtues may continue to grow. "I paint because it is what I do best. I paint to create a dialogue and to make people think." Martinez's current exhibition is in the @Central Gallery in Phoenix's Burton Barr Central Library. Ernest McIntyre |
