Multiple Portraits

“Fragments of action unfold across simultaneous screens, dissolving traditional storytelling into living paintings. These site-specific projects by Pedro Valiente lie where space, time, and narrative intersect, offering viewers an active dialogue between movement, image, and music. Multiple Portraits trilogy looks at how contemporary art can inhabit both the digital and physical worlds.

Tarahumara Project (2024, Spain/Mexico, 7:00) shows the endurance and spiritual connection of the Rarámuri people, famed for their long-distance running and deep ties to the land. The work blends intimate documentary-style footage with rich sound, creating a sensory immersion in Sierra Tarahumara. It draws a contrast between ancient traditions and modernity, inviting reflection on memory, and identity.

Humans in the Desert (2022, Spain/Jordan, 6:00) evokes the vastness and isolation of Jordan’s Wadi Rum desert through minimal, black-and-white imagery. The installation follows a ritualistic exchange, where a bag is passed hand-to-hand between humans and animals in a quiet, wordless narrative. This delicate, cyclical gesture touches on shared instincts and the deep bond between humans and animals.

Penelope is Waiting (2015, Spain, 7:00) reimagines the timeless myth through a contemporary lens in four simultaneous projections, each offering a fragment of her silent, enduring wait. From gazing through a balcony to preparing coffee, these moments of stillness portray a woman suspended in time. Set in a stark, dreamlike space, the installation offers a look at presence and absence.

From the resilience captured in Tarahumara Project to the rituals of Humans in the Desert, the fragmented myth in Penelope is Waiting, the dreamlike confrontation in Oedipus, and the surreal worlds of 282 Broadway, each piece emerges from its unique setting. They all stir emotions and ideas on how we live within the spaces we inhabit.” Site I Behance I EXTERNAL REVIEW

Myth in Transmedia

“Oedipus (2015, Spain) is a site-specific art installation created as part of the seven Visual Poems for the film You Are Mythical (2018, Spain). This piece unfolds at the 49:58min mark of the film, where Oedipus, a character caught between past and future, confronts his mother in a surreal moment of reflection. As he dreams of moving to New York, there is tension between desire, fate, and family ties.

The work is presented across multiple screens —four small, one medium, and one large— each showing a fragmented, overlapping narrative that mirrors Oedipus’s inner conflict. The visuals are drawn from the film New York Spin (2002, Spain/US), which portrays Newyorkers lives. Screens create a layered experience where the lines between reality and dream, dissolve. Through the mix of intimate, fragmented imagery and expansive landscapes, Oedipus challenges viewers to confront identity and destiny.”