Sergio de Miguel's 'Calma' Explores Simplicity and Complexity in Contemporary Art

Sergio de Miguel's work 'Calma' engages with themes of simplicity and complexity, drawing on historical and philosophical references. The piece references the medieval principle of Ockam's razor, which advocates for simplicity in problem-solving, and connects it to a modern aphorism about understanding things as simply as possible without oversimplification. It emphasizes the importance of selective subtraction and abstraction to achieve clarity and progress. The Stadhuis in Rotterdam, with its Latin inscription 'Sera parsimonia in fundo', serves as a visual anchor, highlighting the pursuit of measured parsimony. De Miguel's exploration involves rituals of economy, temperance, and savings to navigate invasive and unmanageable complexity. The work suggests that true advancement comes from maintaining a clean criterion free of superfluous categories, with constant and free precision in selective inquiry. Finding a balance between controlled complexity and simplicity is portrayed as both challenging and attractive, requiring a constant attitude of propositional cleanliness.