This work marks a shift from submission to vertical assertion. The body no longer folds into the stone but presses outward, suggesting emergence. Sierra reframes the mineral mass not as imposed authority but as surface to push against. The nude figure occupies space with deliberation, transforming exposure into declaration. In this continuation of the series, the act of standing becomes symbolic: the body regains agency not by escaping structure, but by confronting it directly within the frame.
Jose Sierra work is deeply influenced by themes of self-representation and a homoerotic gaze. Through his unique aesthetic, he creates abject staged environments that challenge traditional norms. His art often merges personal identity with broader cultural commentary, as seen in his notable works like "Anti-Personnel Grids" and "Self-Portrait." Sierra's pieces are a bold fusion of urban art and intimate self-exploration, reflecting his dynamic engagement with contemporary culture.
A sculptural nude photography staging the body’s act of rising against structural force. Jose Sierra, La Piedra Sustituta II (2020). Available at The Art Design Project, Miami Beach.
Sculptural Nude Photography – #6 From La Piedra Sustituta II by Jose Sierra
#6, 2020
From "La Piedra Sustituta II" Series
Archival Pigment Print on Hahnemühle paper
Limited Edition.
Unframed
Jose Sierra (b. 1991 in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia) obtained his Master in Fine Arts from the University Institute of Fine Arts and Science of Bolivar (UNIBAC) in 2012 with a body of work titled Anti-Personnel Grids, which has since exhibited in different locales of Colombia. Shortly after, he was commissioned by the Colombian Ministry of Culture alongside the artist collective Si Nos Pagan Boys to participate in an urban art exposition titled, La Muerte Se Va de Vacaciones (Death is Going on Vacation) that was executed as a reaction to the traditionalism of Cartagena. In 2014, he exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Cartagena and in La Presentacion Casa Museo Arte y Cultura. He then exhibited in the Cultural Center Ciudad Movil in 2016 with a body of work created in collaboration with the Colombian photographer, Camo. In the same year, he was nominated for the International Luxembourg Art Prize for his recent work Self-Portrait. Sierra’s ongoing body of work continues to be based around his self-representation from which he addresses a homoerotic gaze through the configuration of abject staged environments that he merges himself within as “a subject of aesthetic creation.”
