Palmito (fan) / The language of the gaze

Artwork: Palmito (fan) / The language of the gaze

Artist: Teresa Cháfer

Location: Intersection between Pérez Galdós avenue, Concòrdia avenue and Camí del Coscollar

Date: 1998

This metal sculpture received an award in 1998 in the IV Artistic and Sculptural Works Competition in Aldaia. A tribute to the language of the fan palm, a symbol of the industrial and cultural heritage of the town of Aldaia.

It is curious how the perception of a known place can be altered by a new staging as a result of artistic intervention. It is surprising how a space can be metamorphosed when someone makes it their own and redefines it; when someone finds a common ground between their own desires and the place; when someone uses it as a means and an end for the construction of their dialogue. And it is with this piece, Abanico, that all this takes place.

Three fragments of a single circle designed by and for a heterodox public, for spectators, who on many occasions do not seek but rather find: for unconventional spectators, who often try to cohabit with the new artefacts that have conquered their domestic habitat.

A new image of the topos that will come to be assumed and understood as their own. Three fans that will modify the walks through the city of Aldaia and will show it with new nuances. Words taken from the metal scrutinise us and raise new questions. The gaze… games of seduction… speaking without words… the language of insinuation.