Aprensión y Esoterismo

Antonio Ortega


In this interesting work of the Barcelona artist Antonio Ortega, the artist and ascetic Pere Lluís Pla Buxó presents himself. The particular vision of life, disease, art and creativity that the latter has developed, opens up in front of the camera, as Pla shares all his intuitions, opinions and wisdom with us.

Again we can appreciate how Ortega examines the processes of identity production. In this case, we are presented in a cold a distant fashion with Buxa’s debate between medical and spiritual knowledge, between physical certainties and speculative possibilities. Ortega’s singular ethnographic gaze is thus concentrated on confirming the existence of a human being whose inner world seems fulfilled, affecting all the decisions and ideas uttered by this peculiar character. Buxo’s own personal philosophy of life forces him to lead a bespoke existence, and this comes accross clearly in this video, which just confirms the mental processes of this exceptional person.

In a strage way this work is similar to a later work by Ortega, Populismo y Popularidad. Although the latter’s format is that of an interview, we can discern the artist’s interest in understanding the peculiar life system created and inhabited by another singular character, Yola Berrocal. In these works Ortega thus shows himself filled with curiousity, with an anthropological interest. However, due to the irony permeating the footage, we end up somewhat suspicious of the transparency of his gaze. In spite of it all, this is a very interesting piece, which to a large extent helps us understand the interests of such an idiosynchratic artist.

Technical datasheet

  • Title: Aprensión y Esoterismo
  • Direction: Antonio Ortega
  • Production: London Arts (The Showroom). 2002.
  • Duration: 00:08:44
  • Languages: Catalan
  • Subtitles: English - Spanish
  • Original format: Mini DV
  • Formats: Betacam Digital - DVD
  • TV systems: PAL
  • License: Copyright