Iván Navarro

Chilean

Born 1972

Lives and works in New York, NY

Iván Navarro is a Chilean artist renowned for his innovative use of electrical light to explore themes of power, control, and resistance. Born in Santiago during Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship, Navarro’s work reflects his personal and political history, transforming light into a symbol of both illumination and defiance.

Iván Navarro

Chilean

Born 1972

Lives and works in New York, NY

Iván Navarro is a Chilean artist renowned for his innovative use of electrical light to explore themes of power, control, and resistance. Born in Santiago during Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship, Navarro’s work reflects his personal and political history, transforming light into a symbol of both illumination and defiance.

Mirage (Yellow)

2023

LED light bulb, cherry wood, mirror, one-way mirror and electric energy

65 × 36 × 6 5/7 in.

This work features a seemingly endless abyss within the enclosed frame that transports us into an entirely different world. While the work is a well-executed optical illusion using one-way mirrors, it is also sophisticated in that it reflects Navarro’s complex insight into politics and power. Navarro grew up during Pinochet’s dictatorship in Chile. In the evening, long power cuts would bind the movement of the citizens to their homes. Denied electricity, inadvertently depriving the people of news broadcasts. The presence of lights in his works extends a social commentary on the times ridden with Pinochet’s tactics to control the people of his country.

Mirage (Yellow)

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Mirage (Yellow)

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Mirage (Yellow)

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© 2025 Kanbas. Any images or other visual representations of artworks are © their respective Artist or Estate, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.

© 2025 Kanbas. Any images or other visual representations of artworks are © their respective Artist or Estate, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.

© 2025 Kanbas. Any images or other visual representations of artworks are © their respective Artist or Estate, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.