Life as we don’t know it!
Enter the wonderful colourful world of artist Flor Troconis, watercolors inspired by the barrios of Caracas, favelas of Rio, wooden yalis of Istanbul or simply clothes hanging to dry.
Barrio en Petare Flor Troconis 2011
Deep hues of green jungles, explosions of color protruding through every corner, mountain peaks saluting the sun, beaches mimicking its reefs, drums dancing through the air, the melodies of words flowing, cities flourishing with obscene noises, warmth of life filling every breath, this is the beauty of Latin America. But then, the eternal perfectly balanced natural beauty of its lands becomes interrupted by the man made bricks, blocks, roads, words, strife, hunger, pain; disparity in abundant lands becomes an ironic reality.
This disparity has become the mother of self -proclaimed architects, which have given birth to cascading “favelas” or “barrios”, shantytowns. Within these communities drug lords are the kings, playing baseball or soccer well might be the way out, nameless MacGyvers work on each corner having thorough knowledge of the art of restoring anything, often times women carry the load of the families on their shoulders as they yell out to passerbys to buy concocted homemade goods, clothing, or haircuts; labor is at its pinnacle of informality.
From afar these “favelas”/”barrios” exhibit the diversity of its architects and its people. Vividly painted, hope resonates even in grim circumstances; a daily reminder to those more fortunate that hope, as well as happiness, is a choice.