Museo de Arte Contemporaneo Esteban Vicente
Ignasi Aballi'
Roger Ackling
Gego
Andy Goldsworthy
Gunter Haese
Antoni Llena
Mark Lombardi
Agnes Martin
Helen Maurer
Rei Naito
Fred Sandback
Mira Schendel
Jose' Maria Parreno
Works by twelve artists
Commissioner
D. José María Parreño Assistant Director of the Esteban Vicente Museum of Contemporary Art
Within the avant-guarde tradition, which favored the dramatic and emphatic aspects of a work, and postmodern art which either rivaled the spectacle or protected it from mass consumerism with a strong sense of the anti-aesthetic, a type of substantially different artwork emerged since the 1960´s. Extremely heterogeneous in form and matter, it puts into play deliberately “aesthetic” forms, that is, sensitive concepts such as light, absense or fleetingnness. Lines are also very heterogeneous in these works, which may be ascribed to poor art, minimalism or geometric abstract art. However, very meticulous manual work is involved using materials which, though organic and of little value, are highly expressive and which, to a certain extent contradict their origin through the beauty they come to represent The works are comprised of the light and delicate manipulation of materials which are worked in an extrememly complex manner. In some cases direct intervention is required by the artist in order for a work to be installed. Light, air, threads and wires, pencil and paper are elements that constitute a world in which grace, irony and lightness prevail over gravity.
The creators of these works, as if they were the antithesis of the romantics, have focussed their eye on the slight rather than the voluminous, the frail in contrast to the strong, the tentative in contrast to the rotund. These are works which do not startle but provoke another kind of surprise, a kina of vertigo when faced with the diminutive or barely existent, They oblige us as spectators to open our eyes and lend our attention in order to recapture the almost nothingness which these artists have created.
The twelve artists selected, of which two are Spanish, form an evocative panorama of contemporary art. Born over a long timeline, from the 1920s to the 1960s, they all share a common spirit. The majority of those from abroad have not previously exhibted in Spain or have done so on few occasions, making this an opportunity to become acquainted with them through a careful selection of their work. In addition, three artists, Andy Goldsworthy, Rei Naito and Ignasi Aballí will display works specially created for this exhibition.
José María Parreño Exhibition Commissioner
FEATURED ARTISTS
IGNASI ABALLÍ (Barcelona [Spain], 1958)
ROGER ACKLING (Isleworth [United Kingdom], 1947)
GEGO (Hamburg [Germany], 1912 – Caracas [Venezuela], 1994)
ANDY GOLDSWORTHY (Cheshire [United Kingdom], 1956)
GÜNTER HAESE (Kiel [Germany], 1924)
ANTONI LLENA (Barcelona [Spain], 1942)
MARK LOMBARDI (New York [USA], 1951-2000)
AGNES MARTIN (Canada, 1912-Taos [New Mexico], 2004)
HELEN MAURER (Portsmouth [United Kingdom], 1967)
REI NAITO (Hiroshima [Japan], 1961)
FRED SANDBACK (New York [USA], 1943 - 2003)
MIRA SCHENDEL (Zurich [Switzerland], 1919 - São Paulo [Brazil], 1988)
Sponsored by: Caja Madrid
Museo de Arte Contemporaneo Esteban Vicente
Plazuela de las Bellas Artes s/n. Segovia 40001
hours
Tuesday and Wednesday : 11:00 to 14:00 and 16:00 to 19:00.
Thursday and Friday: 11:00 to 14:00 and 16:00 to 20:00
Saturday: 11:00 to 20:00
Sundays and holidays*: 11:00 to 15:00.
Closed: Mondays
( *The Museum is closed on January 1st, may 1st and December 25th. )
( ** The museum will be closed from 29 September to 15 October due to exhibition´s change.)
admission
General: 2,40 €
Reduced: 1,20 € (seniors over 65, students over 18 with ID)
Free: Friends of the Museo, members of the I.C.O.M,
children under 12 accompanied by an adult and groups from
cultural and educational institutions (prior appointment necessary).
Thursdays: Free to all.