Araceli Dans’ paintings successfully transcend the trite and sentimental by virtue of the rich complexities inherent in the subjects she chooses.
Beneath the simplicity of the juxtapositions is a host of possible meanings just waiting to be deciphered. In these works from 1987, pieces of piña fabric, delicately embroidered with flowers and other motifs are juxtaposed with objects picked from mother nature which also feature decorative attributes: a wild flower, the sampaguita and large variety of sea shells respectively.
Dans demonstrates an unassailable fidelity to nature in the realist tradition. What ensues is a play of contrasts between the intricate motifs embroidered in the fabric and the natural ornamentation which are the attributes of the living objects from nature.