Monday, January 23, 2012

New Modern Art in the Born

By Javier Castillo - Jan/23/2012

There is a new museum in the Born area of Barcelona, appropriately tucked away in a narrow perpendicular street, a stone's throw away from the Picasso Museum. It’s called the Museu Europeu d'Art Modern and for you modern art lovers, you are in for a treat. Although limited in scale and collection, this new center, which opened its doors last June in 2011, exhibits some promising contemporary European artists.

 

The works currently on display, housed in the 18th century Palau Gomis, center mainly around figurative paintings and sculptures. It’s as human as you can get. Three floors of artwork portray depictions of human bodies and forms each giving the viewer a glimpse and unique perspective into the human condition. They speak out, they are bold – expressions of flesh and bone and the underlying spirit. Impressive works include:



Antonio Castello Avilleira´s Models #1 (oil on canvas). This large diptych portrays the same subject in two different positions, one pointing a finger gun at her alternative self, reacting to the gesture with her arms up. This piece is reminiscent of a fashion magazine ad, fresh and playful.






Lorenzo Fernández´s Momento Mori (oil and acrylic on wood). Modern and rich in colors and contrasts, this piece invokes a reaction of self awareness from the viewer as if the piece was observing you rather than the other way around. Symbolisms abound, such as youth and mortality both playing a central theme in this hyperrealistic painting.



Fang Lu´s Autorretrato (oil on canvas). A dramatic piece that screams out and portrays a disturbing side of the human condition. Dark and suffocating, this artwork reminds me of of Goya´s Saturn Devouring His Son  or works by Francis Bacon.







Marti Teixidor´s
Dresden (oil on canvas). This large-scale piece, grandiose with a dramatic narrative shows a burning city in the background and sickly faces in despair littering the foreground. The artist scatters Guernica image fragments around the circumference of the piece to help frame the emotional sequence of the events taking place.




For lovers of music, on Saturdays the museum also offers classical music concerts starting at 6:00 pm. More info: (http://www.meam.es/actividades.html)



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