miguel vallinas imagines inanimate objects as inner identities, with a surrealist twist

miguel vallinas has realized the final collection of work from a three part series of surreal images that reconsider the human form. ‘ceci n’est pas’ — meaning ‘this is not’ in french — explores the concept of identity and personal choice with a surrealist twist. an assortment of inanimate objects, ranging from disco balls to birds’ nests, float above fashionably dressed figures, representing thoughts, dreams and desires, ‘or perhaps just things from daily life that we may take for granted,’ vallinas says.

ceci n’est pas une maison

the series intends to prompt viewers to reflect on who they think they are, what they want to be, and what they truly are. contrary to surrealist painter rene magritte’s ‘ceci n’est pas une pipe’, which aimed to alter perception by creating visual double meanings, vallinas’ concept seeks to find answers, triggering thoughts about identity and appearance. ‘the focus is produced by the unacceptance of that which we observe being something else,’ he describes, ‘it is everything that is implicit in our existence and that that which is definitively ours is the result of our circumstances, our wins, our errors, and our decisions.’

ceci n’est pas un cerveau

ceci n’est pas le nid d’un oiseau

ceci n’est pas une pomme

ceci n’est pas un ballon de rugby

ceci n’est pas un tropheé de chasse

ceci n’est pas la lune

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