Dendrology.- When what is inside is outside. It is said of the science that studies the nature, the origin and formation of the inner part of a real or imaginary space or term.
Jose Antonio Vallejo leads us, once again, through his artistic universe loaded with childhood references where his characters are taking an undeniable maturity. A compulsive cartoonist who narrates his emotions through the situations that his characters live without a script or a fixed course, frequently resorting to self-reference as well as to his fetish authors. In Dendrology he introduces us to his character with the longest journey, which as in Ana María Matute's “Little Theater”, Marioneta participates in a role play where we are all puppets of our own emotions and our own chains.
When what is inside needs to come out, the sleeves of Marionette's magic garment are transformed into hieroglyphics loaded with eloquence. On this occasion, Jóse introduces us to Marioneta transforming into trees of different species with a quasi-botanical descriptive perfection. Marioneta's arms reach the sky and transform into branches that protect while seeking transcendence. A transformation where tree and puppet tend to be confused with a certain animistic sense, giving soul to elements of nature as occurred in some pre-Christian beliefs. Trees that come together and relate creating a shelter space and that somehow also refer to the idea of genealogy and legacy. A construction of the idea of the forest as a meeting place, of confluence, where the branches of the trees merge with each other, creating a protective space conducive to the development of life. In short, a loose chapter that can be projected as a turning point in the artist's production.
Nuria Garcia Arias