Born in San Salvador in 1972, Simón Vega received his BFA from the University of Veracruz in Mexico and his Masters from the Complutense University in Madrid. Growing up in El Salvador in the 1970s and 1980s, Vega witnessed a period when the United States and USSR competed for influence in Central America, memories which have remained influential in his oeuvre. Through his work, he explores political and sociocultural themes and is directly inspired by the informal architecture and objects found both in his native El Salvador and elsewhere in Central America. Vega is known for his sculptures and installations made from various found objects, such as shipping crates, signs, and old televisions. His works are meant to mimic and resemble modernist buildings, as well as create sculptural surveillance systems, tech robots and satellites characteristic of the Cold War period.
This work, created with acrylic and acrylic marker on canvas, is part of the Tropical Space Proyectos series that deals with the effects of the Cold War in Central America. These drawings mimic NASA blueprint diagrams used in the development of space capsules during the “Space Race” of the 1950s and 1960s, and are parodies that use elements of these technical drawings and texts in a humorous way. The drawings are created to document the ephemeral sculptures that are built by the artist in wood, metal and found materials as a mockery of the high tech originals. The present lot, Tropical Mercury Capsule Diagram, depicts the sculptural piece that was presented at the Pérez Art Museum of Miami’s exhibition Global Positioning Systems and which is part of the PAMM’s permanent collection. Today, Vega continues to live and work in El Salvador and has exhibited throughout Europe, Latin America and the United States.
