Cristina BanBan – The Nuance of Memory

BanBan’s pieces evoke those complex states of mind when we feel like crying, and how being transported through time can elicit emotions of profound grief and joy.

- By Evan Pricco

Think about the last time you cried. Oh, there are myriad reasons. Life can be upsetting, life makes us feel nostalgic. We cry out of sadness and happiness, sometimes at the same time. We cry when something is so beautiful it is incomprehensible and, admittedly, we cry at the heinous moments, as well. I bring up this most human act in the dichotomy of Spanish-born painter Cristina BanBan’s newest body of work, a bold and beautiful series of oil paintings, titled Del Llanto, which translates to “from crying.” BanBan’s pieces evoke those complex states of mind when we feel like crying, and how being transported through time can elicit emotions of profound grief and joy. I spoke with BanBan just as she was finishing Del Llanto, in what will most certainly be a watershed moment for her rising career. These paintings tell universal stories in the most personal way.

Evan Pricco: Can we talk about hands? When we spoke the other day, I didn’t even bring it up. And they are so prominent! One of your paintings I really love, EL PRAT DE LLOBREGAT, 2PM, has such incredibly rendered hands. What’s your feeling about hands?

Cristian BanBan: They’re my favorite part of the human body, after the teeth; but painting an open mouth is one of the most difficult things to do, in my opinion. Playing with hands brings movement into the painting. It doesn’t matter if the subjects are in relaxed positions, hands always create a dynamic composition. I paint huge hands, and recently they’ve become more bony and masculine. When I think about hands in paintings, the first thing that comes to mind are Philip Guston’s—so sophisticated and iconic.