Poli Marichal
Utopia - For the Birds and Dystopian Rex diptych
Relief Print of PVC Plate, ed. 60
15”x11” - each

From the Utopia/Dystopia Portfolio Project

Individual print: $250
Pair of prints: $400

Poli Marichal’s Dystopian Rex and Utopia - For the Birds were created in part of the “Utopia/Dystopia” portfolio, curated by artist Miyo Stevens-Gandara. Miyo invited 26 artists to each pick two cards from a full deck, incorporating a diverse range of interpretations and ideas into a single, unified collection. Here, Marichal depicts a monarch of a chaotic world consumed by war, waste, and destruction. The lead head is that of Death, the Great Equalizer; the passive one is that of the enraged king that is seeing his kingdom collapse.  

Born in Puerto Rico, but having lived in Barcelona, London, Boston and Los Angeles, as well as extensively travelling, Marichal incorporates a diverse collection of influences and world views into her work. Therefore she explores both global concerns, such as social, political and environmental issues, often through her own personal understandings. Her experimentation with many techniques allows her to invent expressions that continuously challenge how the world is understood and portrayed.

Marichal received her B.A. in printmaking from the Escuela de Artes Plásticas de San Juan, followed by her M.F.A. from Massachusetts College of Art. She is considered one of the pioneers of experimental film in Puerto Rico, having her film Los Espejismos de Mandragora Luna, chosen to be part of the Hammer Museum exhibition Radical Women: Latin American Art, 1960-1985. Several other of her films were incorporated into the Ism, Ism, Ism experimental film tour that has been exhibited in venues around the globe, including the Reina Sofía in Madrid. Further, she produced and directed the feature documentary, Six Printmakers Breaking the Mold, that was shown in a number of venues as well, including at the Southern Graphics Council International in Dallas.