Blending staged scenes with digital manipulation, this multidisciplinary approach navigates the space between documentary and fiction. Rodrigo Valenzuela’s photography, video, and installation work engage in a semiotic and politically charged critique of social constructs and civic institutions within a post-capitalist context. His photographic compositions evoke transitional urban environments—spaces tied to construction, decay, and moments of social unrest. These settings, already layered as simulacra of reality, are further complicated by his method of rephotographing installations built upon his own photographic backdrops. This process creates a complex spatial displacement, blurring the line between the real and the constructed. Valenzuela’s work poetically examines liminal spaces—thresholds where cities and lives exist in flux, caught between emergence and decline. Inspired by his travels across the United States, he captures overlooked landscapes that reveal the forgotten margins of the American Dream—discarded, neglected, and unseen by many. Through this practice, his art challenges societal blind spots and invites deeper reflection on cultural narratives and their environments. ...
