Marcelo Troche

A face is barely visible behind the folds of a thin sheet of plastic. In Marcelo Troche’s photogravures, the circular framing closes in around figures who seem to be struggling for air.

The plastic gives shape to less visible pressures. From childhood, expectations and prejudices assign us a place. Even in adulthood, they weigh on what we allow ourselves to say, imagine, and create. The effort to catch one’s breath becomes an act of resistance.

Incorporated through chine collé, the lace softens the harshness of the images in some places and brings out the depth of the blacks in others. The lace’s openwork pattern offers a counterpoint to the plastic film that holds the faces captive. We can imagine air passing through those openings.