Jaime Gili is a Venezuelan artists that lives in London. He was the artist chosen by the Maine Center of Creativity  to transform the Sprauge oil tanks in South Portland into one of the largest pubic art paintings in the world. He spoke last night at the Maine College of Art, giving some insight into the origins of the piece. I find that it is always important to gain some depth of perspective in relation to a public artwork before i pass judgment on it. Hearing Gili speak about his aesthetic gave me a better understanding of the work and therefore appreciate it more. I was interested in the way that art was integrated into the architecture of his home city Caracas. Many of the examples of public art that Gili showed us, shared a similar modernist abstract sensibility. Because of the amount of this kind of work in Venezuela you can see it trickle down into popular culture in the form of graffiti.The most powerful part of the talk for me was during question and answers, a person asked, "are you present through the entire process?" The artist of course said no but an audience member, covered in paint interjected with "I am." Every head in the auditorium turned to see one of the men responsible for the actual painting of the tanks. it created an interesting tension between the artist, the audience, and the craftsman. In my mind, it raised questions about ownership when the artist in only present in the idea rather than the actual execution of the work.

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