MY PHILOSOPHY
"Many men have expressed their thoughts through philosophy, mathematics, poetry, or literature. Jorge Jiménez Deredia does so through sculpture; the most physical of the arts is transformed into metaphysics.
In Deredia, the transformation of marble and bronze is a metaphor for the eternal process of transmutation of the cosmos: matter taking form, emptiness being filled, shadow becoming light."
Geppe Inserra
Philosopher and Journalist
Jiménez Deredia has long understood that a truly grounded work of art must engage with the symbolic vision of the past.
For this reason, his sculptures explore the circle and the sphere—and their connection to the human form.
THE SPHERE AND THE CIRCLE
FOR JIMÉNEZ DEREDIA
The shape of the circle corresponds to that of the sun and moon as they appear to us on Earth. In Platonic philosophy, the circle is considered the ultimate and most perfect form—representing eternity, a symbol of perfection without beginning or end, without direction.
The sky itself is a vast circular dome that shelters us.
In Zen Buddhism, the circle symbolizes enlightenment and the perfection of humanity in harmony with its primordial principle. Similarly, Taoist symbols such as Yin and Yang are enclosed within a circle, expressing the balance and unity of the universe.
Across cultures, the circle has been regarded as a symbol of being.
In this context, Deredia sees the circle and the sphere as perfect symbols—sources of inspiration for his work, and tributes to his ancestors and the pre-Columbian spheres created by the ancient Boruca people, emblems of a civilization established in Costa Rica over 2,000 years ago.
Deredia first encountered these spheres at the age of nine during a visit to the National Museum in San José, an experience that left a lasting impression on him. To him, these spheres are not only ancient, magical, and mysterious objects crafted by pre-Columbian civilizations—they are a vision of the world, the expression of a deep, ancestral culture.
By reclaiming the spherical form, Deredia affirms his personal vision of art rooted in memory: first, in his own memories, shaped by his homeland; and second, in a deeper, more distant memory—one he both seeks and finds within the sphere itself.
“Circular and spherical shapes belong to us, they are in our DNA,
Its organic shape reminds us that we come from the stars”
Jiménez Deredia
GENESIS
Deredia goes further. In his sculptural works, he shows how the spherical element transmutes, opens, and expands until it assumes the appearance of a woman—or more precisely, the form that symbolizes the feminine archetype.
By following the sculptural series known as Genesis, we come to understand the Master’s message: the sphere, elevated to a symbol of infinite realities, transforms into a human being, thereby transferring its own memory into that form.
Moreover, through the feminine principle, humanity generates life—reactivating, in turn, the eternal cycle of creation.
The great ambition of Genesis is to describe the cosmic process from which we originate and whose traces we carry deep within us. It embodies the desire to translate the long journey of life into concrete, enduring symbols.
THE SEED THAT TRANSFORMS
I fondly remember that, while I was working on a monumental Genesis, local farmers passing by my house on their way to the fields would often stop and say: "That sculpture is like a seed—it transforms and gives life."
They said it with both simplicity and depth, because they felt a powerful connection to an image that was not foreign to them.
They instinctively knew that the sculpture belonged to them, that Genesis was a symbol of an experience rooted deep within their unconscious.
Jiménez Deredia
TRANSMUTATIVE SYMBOLISM
Jiménez Deredia defines his artistic and philosophical vision as Transmutative Symbolism. The sphere and the circle—universal symbols present throughout human history—are transformed and reinterpreted through his sculptural work.
Symbols are transmuted when they adapt to a new historical context.
A clear example of this occurred during the Renaissance: the semicircular arch and the classical column, both inherited from antiquity, were reshaped through the creation of new architectural canons. Simultaneously, a renewed perspective on ancient literature and the visual arts gave rise to a movement that bridged antiquity with modernity.
Deredia’s Genesis is a similar attempt: the universal symbol of the sphere is imbued with new vitality, transmuting into a contemporary symbol—one capable of connecting deep historical memory with the present.
THE DEREDIAN COSMO-SCULPTURE
"We are a small part of the Whole. Through our existence, we help the Universe fulfill its destiny.
We are stardust in transmutation!"
Jiménez Deredia
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Jiménez Deredia goes beyond form—through his sculptural works, he reveals how the spherical element transmutes, opens, and expands until it assumes the appearance of a woman—or more precisely, a form that symbolizes the feminine archetype.
By following the sequential forms in the Genesis sculptures, we come to understand the Master's message: the sphere, elevated to a symbol of infinite realities, transforms into the human figure and transfers its memory into it. Through the feminine, life is generated—and with it, the eternal cycle of creation is reawakened.
The great ambition of Genesis is to describe the cosmic process from which we emerge, and whose deep traces we continue to carry. It expresses the desire to translate the long journey of life into tangible, enduring symbols.
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