Spanish contemporary artists
The worldwide success of our avant-garde
The talent of renowned names, but also emerging figures, keeps Spanish contemporary art soaring. Proof of this is the international praise our artists receive. Many of them will be present at ARCO, the fair where boundless creativity and cultural dialogue go hand in hand. Do you want to get to know them? Below, we introduce you to the most noteworthy of them.
Spanish contemporary art is one of the most creative, dynamic and stimulating in the world. The heirs of Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Joan Miró, Antoni Tàpies, Eduardo Chillida or the heiresses of Maruja Mallo, Remedios Varo, Ángeles Santos, Ouka Leele or Carmen Laffón fill a landscape that builds bridges with the past while exploring new languages, formats and discourses. For this reason, their work ranges from painting and sculpture to digital art, performance or video art. Because the boundaries between disciplines were blurred long ago, giving rise to hybrid practices where creative freedom knows no bounds. Their work is also in conversation with the great themes of our time: identity, memory, sexuality, technology, sustainability, diversity… ARCOmadrid, the main contemporary art fair in Spain, helps raise awareness of and energize all that talent. Sponsored by Iberia, this year’s 45th edition is between the 4th and the 8th of March. The result is a scene capable of offering original views on the challenges of the 21st century. Among these visions, we highlight those of the following artists.
Miquel Barceló
Miquel Barceló (Felanitx, Mallorca, 1957) painted the ceiling of the Human Rights and Alliance of Civilizations Room, used by the United Nations Human Rights Council, in the Palace of Nations (Geneva, Switzerland). A piece that gives us an idea of his significance as an artist. His international recognition has led to him becoming one of the most sought-after: in 2011, his painting Faena de muleta sold at auction at Christie’s for more than 4.4 million euros. Close to neo-expressionism, with an interdisciplinary approach, he has turned experimentation into his driving force. Africa, where he set up his own studio, and the Mediterranean have had a substantial impact on his work.
Lita Cabellut
The art of Lita Cabellut (Sariñena, Huesca, 1961) is a cascading force that captures the world’s chiaroscuros through a gaze full of lyricism and humanity. Society’s outcasts feature in many of her works through deeply psychological portraits that do not confine themselves exclusively to the canvas. With a very personal style, she has been compared to masters like Francis Bacon or Jackson Pollock. Raised in Barcelona, she moved to the Netherlands—where she has lived since she was 19—to study. From there, she has made a name for herself in the world of art, until becoming one of the most internationally renowned living Spanish female artists.
Jaume Plensa
Sculptures by Jaume Plensa (Barcelona, 1955), one of the most relevant Spanish artists today, can be found in dozens of cities around the world. The bustling world around them seems to calm down. Pieces like Julia in Madrid, Crown Fountain in Chicago, Le Nomade in Antibes, Carmela in Barcelona, or Water’s Soul in New Jersey invite introspection and are good examples of this particular power. In his hands, body, language, thought and memory transform into sculpture. His trajectory won him the National Award for Plastic Arts (2012) and the Velázquez Award for Plastic Arts (2013).
Teresa Solar
We could define Teresa Solar (Madrid, 1985) as a poet of matter. Using materials such as clay, resin or metal, this sculptor creates colourful structures with sinuous shapes that seem to be undergoing a radical transformation. She deals with themes like the body and sexuality, but also communication and language. Her acclaimed participation in the 2022 Venice Biennale, the biggest contemporary art event worldwide, was a turning point. She has already become a key figure in Spanish art. Her name resounds on the international stage, and her works have recently been exhibited in New York, Hamburg and Turin.
Suso33
It was 1984 when a teenager called Jesús grabbed a spray can and painted his first graffiti. Since that day, graffiti has become his greatest ally to express himself and Jesús started to turn into Suso33 (Madrid, 1973). It even helped him get over some problems due to being left-handed and being forced to write with his right hand. Now, several decades later, that kid is one of the most acclaimed urban artists worldwide because of his projects in public spaces, his live performances and his ability to work with other disciplines. In fact, he considers himself a “transdisciplinary” artist.
Marina Núñez
A few years ago, Marina Núñez (Palencia, 1966) traded her paintbrushes for a mouse, and oil painting for software. Moved by her perseverance and curiosity, virtues she tries to teach her students, and which have always served her well, she embarked on her umpteenth artistic venture. Adding digital components to her art only corroborated her visionary status. A fanatic of science fiction, her strong and disturbing imagination is full of monsters that question beauty standards and reveal their pure humanity. Through them, this artist seeks to appeal to both the mind and the heart.
Pedro Paricio
At the age of 27, Pedro Paricio (La Orotava, Tenerife, 1982) received a call from the prestigious Halcyon Gallery (London) to become part of their portfolio of artists. This is how his paintings, which revisit pictorialism from a contemporary perspective, came to share space with masters like Picasso or Warhol. Aware of this privilege, Pedro’s driving force is still his passion: “My willingness to get up every day to go to the studio has not changed.” As if he were a sponge, he absorbs influences from other artistic disciplines, like film, music or literature. Another of his distinguishing traits is his vibrant use of colour, which he attributes to the light that bathes his Canary Islands.
Ana Barriga
From Cuartillos, a district of around one thousand residents, to the world. This has been the unique journey of Ana Barriga (Jerez de la Frontera, Cádiz, 1984), an artist who leaves no one unmoved. In fact, her works receive praise from around the planet today. Regarding her style, we have to mention her exciting use of colour and decision to experiment, but also something more playful —and typical from Cádiz—: her sense of humour. Because her paintings are full of humour and irony. Her imagination, where references from art history and pop culture coexist, is full of seemingly innocent but disturbing beings.
When talking about Spanish contemporary art, we cannot forget veteran painters like Antonio López, Soledad Sevilla, Luis Gordillo, Juan Uslé, Concha Jerez, José Manuel Broto, Jordi Teixidor or Guillermo Pérez Villalta. Nor names from the following generation like Alfonso Albacete, Ángela de la Cruz, Abraham Lacalle, Elena Blasco, Francisco Leiro, Antón Patiño or Secundino Hernández. Nor the female painters who are leading the next generation: Cristina BanBan, Laura Cano, Elena Gual, Vicky Uslé, Okokume, Coco Dávez or Miriam Escofet. Among the more established sculptors, we find names such as Manolo Valdés, Blanca Muñoz, Manolo Paz, June Crespo, Juan Garaizabal, Eva Lootz, Diego Canogar, Belén Uriel, Txomin Badiola or David Rodríguez Caballero. Spanish performance still finds a great role model in Esther Ferrer, admired by multidisciplinary artists like Cristina Lucas, Ignasi Aballí, Laia Estruch, Avelino Sala, Leonor Serrano Rivas, Pilar Albarracín, Yolanda Domínguez, Cabello/Carceller, Irma Álvarez-Laviada, Ana Laura Aláez or Pedro G. Romero. Urban art, thanks to the work of artists like Okuda San Miguel, Aryz, PichiAVO, Rosh, Pejac, Boa Mistura, Escif or Reskate Studio, also holds its own space. Just like digital artists like Solimán López, Anna Carreras, Daniel Canogar, Mónica Rikić, or Sergio Albiac. All the above make up a critical and vibrant collective that fly high and receive praise wherever they go.
