"Retablo No. 5 (An Attic of Records)" by Patrick Fitzgerald

The intricate retablos of contemporary artist Patrick Fitzgerald are his means of paying homage to the musicians that inspired him throughout his life. Derived from Mexican votive painting, his retablos are an offering to the revered people and places that dwell in his memory and imagination. The series began as a way to process the simultaneous melancholy and fascination he experienced after the passing of an admired musical artist. Since then, his retablos have taken many forms, each a three-dimensional collage layered with spontaneous decisions and nostalgic references. In itself an act of devotion, his ‘record store retablos’ are painstakingly crafted to honor his love of music and reveal the arcane, internal worlds of his imagination.

Entitled “Retablo No. 5 (An Attic of Records),” this latest work was born from the memory of hearing the distant voice of famous Irish tenor singer John McCormack emanate from a grainy 78 record. An homage to his grandparents, their tastes in music and the places wherein their memories dwell, the retablo captures the nostalgia of a crackling record with a still life vignette of a dusty attic filled with posters, instruments and piles of old records. Spindly branches and loose wires grow out from the clutter, a manifestation of the spiritual energy of the lingering ghosts in his mind. Careful surface treatments achieve the look of wear and age, while organic elements like acorn caps and a jarred wasp’s nest are suggestive of nature reclaiming an abandoned environment. Enclosed within a gold-painted frame textured with a snake skin pattern, the retablo recalls shadow box folk art and sits as a free-standing sculpture.

"Retablo No. 5 (An Attic of Records)," 2023
Patrick Fitzgerald
Oil, mixed media, and collage mounted on wood panel.