ON THE COVER with The Multidimentional Artist TOMAS BÜRKEY
“If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear to man as it is: Infinite”
And it is with this phrase that we would like to introduce an artist who, for two decades, has transported San Miguel toward unimaginable portals that have undoubtedly helped our wonderful city become one of the artistic and cultural landmarks it is today.
We are talking about the multicultural artist Tomás Joaquín Burkey Marambio who, being from Chile and having an American father, began his artistic exploration almost from birth, starting with the profoundly beautiful world of music.
Music, painting, performance, dramaturgy, theater, sculpture, and mapping are just some of the dimensions the daring artist has ventured into, using them as a toolbox to express what matters most to him: the transformative power of love and light.
But what Tomás does should not be confused with multimedia, since multidimensionality implies an understanding of the human condition as beings whose essence cannot be contained or encompassed within a single container, which is why he uses multiple techniques to express what is sometimes left unsaid.
But this does not mean that he flits from one thing to another like a little bird from pollen to pollen, taking lightly each of the artistic forms he explores; rather, Mr. Burkey commits himself to the limit with each art form, mastering it in its highest expression and to its fullest capacity, as if the artist were a kind of magician with certainty and surgical precision in each of his tricks.
This is how he brought the “Festival de la Calaca” to San Miguel: upon realizing that our Revolutionary City was not particularly known nationally and internationally for our Day of the Dead festivities, he set out to give our town a new name as a must-see stop.
For this undertaking, he made a community effort to bring together young local and international artists he met in places such as Burning Man to create installations, performances, altars, and happenings, all within the framework of this great festival.
One of Burkey’s most memorable pieces is the “Pirámide de la Muerte,” in which he creates a monumental work using the brass so beloved by local artisans to create several niches for those who have lost loved ones and wish to contribute financially to the creation of such a spectacular piece, which, although executed by a single individual, embodies the desire of all.
In counterpoint to this, it was during the COVID era that the artist came up with the idea of creating the “Altar a la Vida,” using the facade of his own home for the installation; this is how he created this beautiful piece made from edible plants as a statement on self-sustainability.
As it was a time when people could not go out to museums or exhibit in galleries, the artist decided to make this installation for everyone with edible species to inspire people who perhaps did not have the financial resources at that moment with an alternative through which they too could cultivate their own vertical garden.
Another of the magnificent experiences that the Festival de la Calaca brought to San Miguel was when Tomás had the good fortune to bring in Sonic Butterfly and play drums alongside it in an experience that moved the entire town to tears.
For it was the largest stringed instrument in the world, in which Andrea Brook tied copper strings from high atop the Parroquia down to the esplanade of the Jardín Principal and invited all of San Miguel to witness her magical interpretation, creating a kind of giant violin in which all those in attendance were inside the instrument, thus becoming part of the musical creation.
Without a doubt, something transcendental that both Tomás and all those who attended still, to this day, recall with tears of emotion as they remember the magical musical resonances they were able to feel throughout their entire being.
And so now that Day of the Dead is approaching, Tomás is preparing to create his new edition of “Pirámide de la Muerte,” and he warmly invites all our readers who would like to be part of this ceremonial piece in honor of their departed loved ones to write to him at [email protected]
Likewise, he is preparing a Contemporary Art Fair, about which we will soon release all the information, and which bears the mysterious name Percepto, of which we are certain Burkey’s performance will transmute dimensions.
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