A peek into Elena Del Rivero‘s studio in the heart of the East Village reveals walls adorned with her latest works of art and several unfinished pieces, each a testament to his artistic prowess.
Valencian artist Elena Del Rivero was kind enough to invite us into her studio in the heart of the East Village , share with us their latest work and pamper ourselves with a cup of tea. As we sat and drank, we talked about the latest art trends in New York, her life in the city, and her relationship with Spain. Each turn of the conversation shedding new light on the vicissitudes of her singular artistic career.
Elena’s visit was not only an opportunity for us to catch up on the latest happenings in the art world, but also to learn about her ongoing projects. Before leaving the studio, Del Rivero shared with us his latest project, “Home Address,” a tribute to the suffragette movement that was presented the next day at New York City Hall for International Women’s Day.
The Acquisition Award of the SOLO Collection at the ARCOmadrid 2023 has been awarded to the work ‘The liberation of the myth (2022)’ by the Chilean artist Sandra Vásquez de la Horra, her work has been exhibited at the Galería Senda stand (9B21). This piece will be included in the upcoming Espacio SOLO exhibition titled “Protection No Longer Assured“, which will take place from March 10 and will explore different notions of the sublime.
The award was given by Pablo Martínez, CEO of the SOLO Collection, and Óscar Hormigos, its Chief Creative Officer, as well as Maribel López.
From left to right: Maribel López, Pablo Martínez, Óscar Hormigos and Carlos Durán.
Congratulations to the artist! We also want to express our gratitude both to the SOLO Collection for its commitment and support for contemporary art, and to the #ARCOmadrid fair for offering such an important platform for the art world.
SANDRA VÁSQUEZ DE LA HORRA, The Liberation Of The Myth 2022
The artist Evru/Zush has been awarded the 18th Electronic Art Arco-Beep prize for his work Opaulo (1990), a digital print on canvas exhibited at our stand (9B21 – Galeria SENDA). This award, established in 2006, and carried out in collaboration with the ARCOMadrid Fair, has been set as the origin, the triggering element , from the .BEEP { Collection;}, a pioneering initiative in the dissemination of electronic and digital art in Spain.
The work of Evru / Zush is a clear example of his ability to create art that transcends the limits of what is conventional. From the gallery we express our pride and satisfaction at having exhibited the winning work and at having collaborated with an artist who is a “universal pioneer in a world that promotes interactivity and viewer participation”.
Visit by Natalia Garriga, Minister of Culture of the Generalitat, Edgar García, director of the ICEC, Marta Gusta, Director of the Area of Visual Arts at ICEC, Ester Capella, delegate of the Generalitat (Madrid).
We congratulate Zush / Evru on their well-deserved award and thank the Beep Collection and the Newart Foundation for their important work in promoting electronic and digital art .
After the recent inauguration of the monographic exhibition “Zush in Ibiza ”, at the Fundació Suñol in Barcelona, in collaboration with the Museu d’Art Contemporani d’Eivissa, Evru/Zush returns to exhibit part of his work conceived in Ibiza (1968-1983), a fundamental period for the artist, who experimented with very different formats and techniques never seen before. Precisely at that time, in 1968, the young artist Albert Porta decided to become Zush and carry out a creative self-healing strategy after he had passed through the phrenopathy hospital in Barcelona.
If we were to read in a prestigious medium in the art world that an artist has created a highly personal proposal that is absolutely coherent, ingenious, solid and bold in the metaverse, with avatars and codes, languages of the world video game or augmented reality, with stereoscopic images, colors and unreal worlds, providing a radically new scenario to the world of creation, we would launch ourselves to discover the proposal of this advanced Artist.
That is precisely what Zush already did, more than 40 years ago!
Booth view 9B21 (Artist Project) #1
Booth view 9B21 (Artist Project) #2
Evrugo Mental State, a world as real as our own, but existing in an uncertain place (which today we would probably translate as some sort of metaverse) with its own language, characters that inhabit it, currency, anthem and so many other characteristics typical of a real world, it was worked on and defined by him for years and presented in different contexts, we have seen it at MACBA, at the Reina Sofía, the São Paulo biennials or at Documenta, and even in the fantastic exhibition of the “Wizards of the Earth” at the Pompidou Center by Jean Huber Martin.
That real world, it has been and it is and that shows us how advanced in his time our honoree always was and is, who launched himself to investigate and create (through some devices, then called Personal Computers and that were unattainable except for a few professionals or researchers) and with them, through tools that would surprise us today, to continue creating their fascinating world. The WWW had not even been imagined then. Before our today.
Several words like Scanahrome or Infographics had to be invented. Works worked through digitalization and then in some cases printed on those rudimentary devices that today we would call plotters.
Zush is undoubtedly a universal pioneer in this world and that is why we want to pay tribute to his work.
“My thing is individual mythologies. I am someone who generates his own way of thinking, of seeing reality or of seeing the world. What interests me is being a bridge between sanity and madness”.
Evru/Zush
Renusa, 1989-1990
Acrylic painting on photography paper mounted on wood
200 × 100 × 5 cm
Thus, once again, the bells are once again the protagonists in space, this time accompanied by their famous nagas, Hindu deities with a human face and torso, generally of a woman, and the body of a snake. In this way, the desire to return to being Evru materializes, under the representation of snakes, beings that, like the artist himself, shed their skin in a natural process of renewal and growth. This desire for transformation is a constant in his career, through turning points that allow him to reflect on concepts such as identity, otherness or the passage of time. Thus, the desire for death and rebirth is the declaration of intent of a transgressive and unclassifiable artist who denies himself and reaffirms himself more and more emphatically and immortal.
This was already announced by Richard Wagner when he coined the term “Gesamtkunstwerk”, referring to opera as a total work of art that integrates the six arts: painting, sculpture, music, poetry, dance and architecture.
The Wagnerian ideal seeks a fusion between all the participatory elements of opera, as Jaume Plensa, known for his multifaceted artistic vision, has done. The Catalan artist has taken on the challenge of directing the stage production of the opera Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona.
Verdi’s well-known opera premieres this February 16 under the direction of Josep Pons, with a powerful aesthetic and ritual presence of Jaume Plensa. Inspired by Shakespeare’s Macbeth, the artist confesses that “it is one of the most profound and interesting reflections on duality between body and soul, between abstraction and matter“.
Plensa affirms that “it is one of Shakespeare’s most mental plays, because we have all been Macbeth, Lady Macbeth and other characters in the play at one time or another“, which is addressed “to the deepest sense of the human being“. All in all, for Plensa, Macbeth represents a deeply introspective theatrical work that resonates with the universal human experience. He explains that each character in the play is a representation of diverse aspects of the human being, inviting the viewer to explore his or her own psyche through the operatic narrative.
“I wanted to make a completely mental opera, to see in each scene moments that are like us, we have all been characters in the piece at one time or another“. Through the costumes, with most costumes out of his time, working on the choreography with Antonio Ruiz and lighting with Urs Schönebaum, Jaume Plensa aims to bring the viewer a more spiritual vision of the work, capturing in the best possible way the journey through the imaginary characteristic of the sculptor. His goal is to take the viewer on a spiritual journey through the rich imaginary that characterizes his work as a sculptor.
Last Wednesday, January 18, 2023 will remain engraved in the memory of the children of the Fundación Comtal, an organization that has been working tirelessly since 1994 to provide opportunities for the future to children, adolescents and young people in vulnerable situations and their families. On this special occasion, on the occasion of “World Selfie Day in Museums”, they had the privilege of visiting Galeria SENDA.
From the moment they set foot in the gallery, the young people were greeted with a warm welcome and a detailed explanation of the current exhibition: “Love Song” by renowned artist Elena Del Rivero. Excited by the opportunity to immerse themselves in the world of contemporary art, they listened attentively as the story and meaning behind each work of art on display at SENDA was narrated to them.
After absorbing all the information about the exhibition, came the most exciting moment of the visit. As part of the scheduled activity, each child was invited to choose one of the works on display in the gallery to study it closely. With pencils and paper in hand, they immersed themselves in a world of creativity and expression. With each stroke, they tried to capture the essence and beauty of the surrounding artwork. From the vibrant colors to the smallest details, each child let their imagination run wild as they brought their own interpretation of the works to life.
Amidst laughter and murmurs of excitement, the young people shared their creations with each other, enthusiastically describing every detail they had captured in their drawings. For many of them, this experience was much more than just an artistic exercise; it was a unique opportunity to express their emotions and unleash their creativity.
As the visit came to an end, the young people left Galeria SENDA with a sense of satisfaction and pride in what they had accomplished. For them, this experience was not only an opportunity to explore the world of art, but also a reminder that, despite the challenges they face in their daily lives, they have the power to create beauty and meaning around them.
In short, “World Selfie Day at Museums” was not only a celebration of art, but also a reminder of the positive impact art can have on the lives of children, especially those who need it most. Although it may seem like a global, absurd and little-known day, it is thanks to such oddities that art never dies. Moreover, thanks to initiatives such as the one proposed by Galeria SENDA for this celebration, art continues to be a beacon of hope and creativity for future generations. Because, as the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, said: “Without art, life would be a mistake“.
Chus Roig, partner and co-founder of the gallery during the explanation with the Fundació Comtal group
Here are some of the most outstanding drawings that the children of the Fundació Comtal created for this initiative, along with their respective original work:
Jaume Plensa Martina (2022) Wood, 140 x 32 x 44 cm
Túlio Pinto Complicity #29 (2021) Steel and glass, 140 x 40 x 96 cm
Stephan Balkenhol Man with pink tie (2022) Wood, 120 x 95.5 x 11.7 cm
Elena Del Rivero #102 (2020) Collage with damaged and recovered fragments of acrylic on canvas, oil, thread and canvas plastered on museum board, 29 x 23 cm
Evru Zush Girls Of My Life (1988) Oil on paper, 92 x 184 cm
Elena del Rivero has generated new music sheets, compositions constituted in and from the fragment, a palimpsest of memories that create community and collective imagination. Each work is nourished by previous gestures and generates choreographies in which we can intervene from shared thought. All these works accompany each other and are constellations that make up her vital imagination.
In this stellar space other voices resonate, other internal and social movements. In this space that welcomes us today, intimate passages and collective revolts are presented in constant dialogue, all forging her visual writing. Images, words, sound, spaces, her universe flies over us and touches us.
Without this necessary friction, the movement that fosters conduction would not take place, which, in the composer’s words, becomes a universal vocabulary in which music becomes language, made up of gestures and cadences, of fragments and memories of a collective ritual.
Some of the fragments that make up these collages were part of other works that were on the floor of his old studio, located on Cedar Street in New York, the day the attack took place of the World Trade Center, on September 11, 2001.
We could imagine that, months later, after collecting the fragments, Butch Morris was being heard in some room in the city. Tunes that coexist and promote frequencies from almost forgotten remnants. It is interesting to point to that gesture before and after something, it is interesting to think together about that universal conduction.
It is convenient to attend to the generated landscapes, to the ritual that surrounds them and allows us to be united, with that pairing of images, rhythms and stories, with that simultaneity that promotes the performativity of the ritual.
The Círculo Ecuestre is organizing this year 2022 its third edition of By Invitation: Círculo Internacional de Arte Moderno y Contemporáneo, at the club’s headquarters, located at 169 Bis Balmes Street. From December 14 to 18, twenty-three galleries, both national and international, have been chosen to exhibit representative works of modern and contemporary art in this Barcelona space. The By Invitation initiative arose from the mind of businessman and politician Enrique Lacalle, vice-president of the Círculo Ecuestre, in response to the need to offer the city of Barcelona a unique artistic event in an exclusive environment that makes attendees feel part of a special circle. Such has been the success of this annual exhibition that this year the Círculo Ecuestre is hosting the event for the third consecutive year.
For this edition of By Invitation 2022, we present part of the collections of some of the artists that make up the essence of Galeria SENDA. Firstly, the internationally known Jaume Plensa will exhibit his spectacular bronze sculpture “Study for Martina” as well as his work on paper “Dee“. His projects, characterized by monumentality and the exploration of the duality between the material and the immaterial, stand out for his ability to create sculptures that transcend the physical and explore the human essence and communication. Plensa is recognized for his public sculptures located in cities around the world, which awaken reflection and emotional connection with the viewer.
Joining this artistic event are the works of Antoni Tàpies, the prominent Catalan artist known for his contribution to the informal art movement or informalism and for his exploration of matter and textures in his artistic representations. Tàpies developed a distinctive style that combined abstract elements with symbols and signs charged with meaning. His work reflects his interest in the spiritual and metaphysical, using everyday materials such as soil, sand and found objects to create a unique artistic expression that challenges the traditional conventions of art. Tàpies left a lasting legacy in Spanish and international contemporary art, being recognized as one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. Part of his legacy will be exhibited in this edition of By Invitation with works such as “LLULL XXXIV” or “Polze núm.2“.
North American Peter Halley will also be exhibiting at the Círculo Ecuestre this year. Peter Halley is an outstanding artist whose work has left a profound mark on the international art scene. Recognized for his participation in the neo-geo movement of the 1980s, Halley uses geometry as a language to explore space and time in our contemporary society. His works, with cold, rectilinear geometric forms, reflect the closed and often oppressive order of our urban environment. Through his characteristic roll-a-tex texture and expressive use of color, Halley establishes connections to Pop Art and mass culture, offering a critical and reflective look at our social and political reality.
Yago Hortal and his monumental canvases will be hanging on the walls of By Invitation III. Born in Barcelona, he is an artist noted for fusing chance and consciousness in his creative process, turning the canvas into a vibrant stage where color comes to life. His expressive and passionate style invites the viewer to experience tactile sensations, creating a unique connection between the work and the viewer. A dozen of his canvases can be seen on the walls of the Círculo Ecuestre.
Xavi Bou‘s chronophotographic work will also be on display for this new edition. A geologist by training and photographer by passion, Bou has fused his love for the natural sciences with his artistic ability to reveal the hidden beauty of nature. Inspired by his experiences in the wetlands of the Llobregat delta, Bou has developed his most emblematic project, “Ornithographies,” which captures the invisible patterns traced by birds in the sky during flight. Through a unique combination of art and science, Bou has managed to challenge human perception and offer a new perspective of the natural world. This exhibition will feature three of his photographs from “Ornithographies“.
Túlio Pinto and his sculptural work “Complicity #34” will be present as part of SENDA‘s gallery proposal for By Invitation 2022. The Brazilian sculptor defies physical laws through his work, creating tensions and balances that defy gravity. With a background in Fine Arts and specialization in sculpture, Pinto uses a variety of opposing materials, such as cement, iron and frozen water, to achieve a unique harmony in his works.
Galeria SENDA‘s latest proposal is Gonzalo Guzmán, a sculptor from Madrid who, in his recent projects, uses lucid dreams as a source of inspiration and inner exploration in his art. His sculptures, which represent the metallic structures of his dreams, challenge the limits of reality and perception. By questioning our beliefs through art, Guzmán invites us to reflect on the world around us and our relationship with it.
In collaboration with Lab36, we will also exhibit works by Albert Pinya and Mina Hamada. Pinya, a multidisciplinary artist, explores human duality and social tensions through his works. With a provocative style and vibrant palette, he addresses themes such as identity, power and contemporary culture. His paintings and sculptures, charged with symbolism and energy, incite the viewer to question the complexity of the modern world and human interactions. On the other hand, multicultural artist Hamada fuses influences from East and West in her expressive murals and artworks. With a palette of warm colors and organic forms, Hamada invites the viewer to explore her dream world, where youth and philosophical depth intertwine harmoniously.
LAB36 – Booth E9
Galeria SENDA – Booth E9
Xavi Bou & Gonzalo Guzmán
Carlos Durán & Enrique Lacalle
Albert Pinya
Installation shot 2020
Installation shot 2021
As this is a private social club, access to enjoy the exhibitions is by invitation only. To obtain one of these, please contact the gallery in advance. In addition, and in parallel to the exhibition, there will be a series of conferences related to the works presented. For more information about the By Invitation III program, click on the following link https://byinvitation.es/ and discover every detail of this new edition.
This morning, along with Chus Roig, we have visited Evru Zush at his home studio in Barcelona.
We remember his exhibition “Volver a ser” at Galeria SENDA almost three years ago, an exhibition of small-format pencil drawings with which he presents hybrid beings with a human face and a snake body.
Evru Zush‘s work is characterized by the construction of a personal and autobiographical mythology, based on images that seem to overflow and the creation of his own style of writing, giving rise to multiple parallel universes that maintain a subtle balance where the logic of composition barely keeps the chaos in check.
During the creative process of his latest exhibition at the gallery, Evru Zush noticed that the drawings he was working on corresponded to the iconographic structure of the representations of the “Nagas”, Hindu deities with a human face and torso, generally female, and snake body. In this way, Evru’s constant desire to “be again” materializes, in the present exhibition, in the representation of snakes, beings that, like the artist himself, shed their skin in a natural process of renewal and increase.
Exhibition “Volver a Ser” Evru Zush in Galeria SENDA 2020
On January 12 at 7 pm Imma Prieto, director of Es Baluard, and Mateo Feijoo, curator of the El Archivo del Polvo project, will present LOVE SONG at Galeria SENDA
The exhibition is dedicated to the life and work of Lawrence D. “Butch” Morris (02.10.197 Long Beach CA.- 01.29.2013 Brooklyn, NY) whose music can be heard during the course of the exhibition courtesy of the artist’s legacy – with our thanks.
Del Rivero will present a selection of works taken from various projects carried out throughout his career that culminate in the concept of admiration for life and experience – leitmotiv and essence of the artist’s inspiration.
In the context of the last stage of the ”Dust Archive” (2001-2021), Love Song will include the 30 collages-assemblages that were presented in Es Baluard, Palma de Mallorca, built with pieces of painting rescued from his study of works destroyed during the 9/11 attack.
From “Letters from Home”, where the artist delves into the domestic with the kitchen table as a banner, the artist proposes a conceptual experience with kitchen towels-paintings from different years.
Elena also incorporates works related to the “Letters to the Mother” , another of her great projects since 1991, with elements that she has used constantly throughout her career such as needles, painting, embroidery and fabrics.
The exhibition is completed with ”Fragments of my Ruin”, a work in which all his ethical and aesthetic concerns of recent years come together in a large installation.
The artist Elena Del Rivero for Metal Magazine
With a photograph of Butch walking through the East Village in New York and taken by Elena in 2008, the exhibition will close along with others taken during the Black Lives Matter demonstrations in the Soho neighborhood. The images will accompany us throughout the visit as a reflection on the historical, the collective and the personal in the context of an immediate present.
Elena del Rivero has lived and worked in New York, USA, since 1991. She has had individual exhibitions at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía (Madrid); New Museum (New York), Corcoran Gallery of Art Washington D.C.); International Center of Photography (New York); The Drawing Center (New York); or the Patio Herreriano Museum in Valladolid, among others.
