Maia del Estal
(b. 1993, Buenos Aires, Argentina) is a self-taught artist raised in a family of artists, actors, and political dissidents. From a young age, Maia engaged in painting workshops and poetry readings. She was deeply influenced by the vibrant queer counterculture of Buenos Aires.
EARLY WORK
Maia began painting abstraction around the age of 14, mixing various materials on found objects. Her early work was heavily influenced by Informalism, particularly artists like Alberto Burri and Antoni Tàpies. She experimented with industrial materials ‘painting’ on unconventional supports.
This approach reflected her fascination with the ‘life’ within materials in relationship with the social context.
Maia’s early work was characterized by a humble, experimental approach, focusing on the rawness and transformation of substances
‘My early work wasn’t about composition, was about the raw action of putting things together, letting the materials speak for themselves.’
In 2015, I introduced Maia to my friend Matilde Bensignoir, who owned a spacious gallery. Impressed by Maia’s work, Matilde offered her a solo show by the end of the year. Next thing I knew, Maia was hauling massive pallets from around the neighborhood into her studio. I was amazed she could even move those things!
The exhibition featured 10 works on wooden pallets mixing tar, cement, sand, and a variety of other materials.
