Cartas al futuro/Letters to the Future, 2019

First presented at Art Basel Miami Beach, Cartas al futuro/Letters to the Future is an installation of hand-crafted wood sculptures, oil paintings, and ephemera within a reconstruction of Fernández’s grandfather’s living room in Spain, which doubles as his woodworking studio. Fernández’s grandfather sends his sketches and cardboard studies to her in the U.S. Since he can no longer carve due to deteriorating eyesight, these become proposals for future works which he cannot himself complete. A clock, made by Fernández from one such drawing, is a central reminder of the passage of time and the workings of memory within this recreated space—and of that real place where her grandfather continues to live and work. All sculptures are hand-carved by Fernández in her grandfather’s style. A pervasive inscribed “x” motif fills the booth walls and wooden objects; inherited from her grandfather, it marks a throughline between their shared practices.