Exhibition review: BARCELONA CONTEMPORARY ART FAIR 2021
Barcelona, Spain | June 03 – 20, 2021

ITSLIQUID Group is proud to announce the great success of the first edition of BARCELONA CONTEMPORARY ART FAIR 2021, held in Barcelona, at Valid World Hall Gallery from June 03 to June 20, 2021, with the extraordinary participation of more than 50 artists coming from all over the world.

Click here to see the photo full reportage

BARCELONA CONTEMPORARY is a contemporary art fair that presents collective and solo projects by leading and emerging international artists. The 2021 edition represents a forum for direct exchange of ideas and contacts between collectors, artists, photographers, designers and art professionals. The art fair features paintings, sculptures, photography art, installations, video art and live performance.

BARCELONA CONTEMPORARY 2021 analyses the relationship between body and space, and the hybridization between identities and cultural/physical/social/urban settings in contemporary time, through two main sections: MIXING IDENTITIES and FUTURE LANDSCAPES.

MIXING IDENTITIES analyses the hidden parts of our identities, through an immersive experience inside the fascinating universe of the complex labyrinths of our consciousness. The human body is a changing system that connects us with other bodies and spaces to perceive the surrounding reality; a strong communication system with its own language and infinite ways of expression.

FUTURE LANDSCAPES are abstract, infinite and conceptual, associated with a sense of freedom and infinite extension. Primarily experienced with the mind, spaces redefining their limits and borders, transforming surfaces in open flow of pure ideas. This section focuses on the concept of the borders and the structures between body, mind and soul, the human identity and the city, the space and the ground.

The exhibition opened its doors on June 03, and it revealed to be an authentic meeting point of different cultures, united by a single purpose: art.

From Cuba, Dayami Hayek, through the use of different techniques in a clear and intentional way, makes pepole reflect and meditate about issues such as environmental pollution, women’s rights, world peace, racism, the protection of the environment, the use of technology. Each of her works has an important story to tell, but the best part is the premonitory aspect of her work: after a painting is finished, the same story happens in real life around her or around the world, amazingly surprising. Sebastian Paluch, from Poland, started his “adventure” with art fairly recently, namely with coronavirus pandemic caused lockdown. In this period in fact, he was finally free to explore some other things in life, in his case that was venture into fractal creation. Unrestricted by usual constraints of Monday to Friday, 9 to 5 workday, he dived into fractal software and after a while, really amazing results started to appear. Fractal art is not exactly like conventional art, he doesn’t not know what result he is going to achieve at the end of the process. What he does is to explore virtual, yet unrealized combinations of mathematical functions, and decides that the job is done based purely on his sense of aesthetics, and when he is emotionally touched by what he sees.

Rachele Amadori traveled far and wide throughout Italy, capturing the images, the sensations, the emotions, colors and words of all the people she met in her path. This cultural baggage made up of volunteering, research and study of spirituality, psychology, relational dynamics, is transformed into her art which contains a psycho-anthropological path of re-elaboration of these stimuli. The canvas is a way to put them in order, externalize them and set them with colors and lines. Her art is emotional / experiential. Buying one of her works means embarking on a piece of her path, often those who know her get in tune with her, get involved and take away a part of her energy. Jonathan Berkh presented works made with paper: when he deals with this material, he has to respect the limited strengths, the weaknesses and characteristics of this medium way more than with any other media he is working with. It teaches him to apply just the right amount of force otherwise it will break, rip, will get injured. All the tears and holes in his papers are part of the work and are a reminder that he got carried away. A very important lesson he wants us to reflect on – it is just the same with the people we meet – their cracks and rifts and holes and injuries might also be a reminder that someone got carried away – make sure it isn’t you!

Jerry Strohkorb‘s new works focuses on the concept of “Seeing the unseen”, to visualize the emotional, psychological, and spiritual aspects that truly define our unique identity as human beings. He strives to build deeply layered works which express his ideas, show the ways in which one can work through the struggles of life. He is fascinated with the contraposed themes of suffering and growth, despair and hope. He tried to activate and allow his subconscious mind to freely communicate through this work. He explores the connections between physical materiality and the unseen, using figurative elements, symbols, and abstraction to communicate complex ideas. His works unravel and reveal cognition, metacognition, and layers of the subconscious. These works express abstract ideas, and motifs in emotional and practical forms with which the viewer can connect on a deep level. Mariola Naranjo comes from Andalucia: blue sky and sea, red sunsets, a bright orange-yellow sun… the same colors that she has brought years later to her paintings, created with oil, flax and poppy oils, sand and salt. When she paints, she seeks to excite whoever stops before my painting. Feeling emotion reminds us that we are still alive, that whatever happens at that moment in our lives, we have not lost the ability to feel, to imagine, to dream, to surprise ourselves, to love… And that is good. It is a first step. It is giving yourself permission to live. Every day. With more hope and less fear.

The first edition of BARCELONA CONTEMPORARY proves to be a forum for direct exchange of ideas and, more deeply, a way to establish a new contact with the new normal.

organized by ITSLIQUID Group
curator Luca Curci
in collaboration with Valid World Hall Gallery
project manager Giulia Tassi
project coordinators Veronica Piras, Giulia Spagnuolo
collaborators Rümeysa Akyildiz, Camilla Folin, Erika Parise, Camilla Serafini, Nisa Sezgin
graphic designer Marina Caracciolo
supported by B.B. ART | FORO CULTURAL DE AUSTRIA, MADRID | GALERIE CHEVALIER | HUB DESIGN

VENUE
Valid World Hall Gallery
c/ Buenaventura Muñoz 6, 08018 Barcelona, Spain
June 03 – 20, 2021
Tuesday – Friday | 10:00 AM – 02:00 PM and 05:00 PM – 08:00 PM
Saturday | 11:00 AM – 02:00 PM

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COVID-19 Protection Concept – ITSLIQUID Group

The health and safety of our staff and visitors are of predominant importance to ITSLIQUID Group. This Protection Concept governs how we intend to operate after the lockdown has ended, the rules that will be applied inside the exhibition spaces and how these will be implemented in practice. Read more.

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ABOUT US

ITSLIQUID is a web based information platform, founded in 2001 by Luca Curci, dedicated to world wide distribution of information about calls for entries, exhibitions and events at some of the world’s leading art galleries, museums and foundations selected. ITSLIQUID has already built a readership of more than 250.000 qualified subscribers. Among them architects, designers, artists, collectors, art critics, curators, dealers, and other personalities of the International art, architecture and design world. It provides advertising services, press office services for events and projects, articles and specials published on the website, media partnerships services.

During the last 20 years, ITSLIQUID Group has became a cultural hub between creatives, exhibition spaces and art lovers. Among our international partners, Art Now Fair, Art Vancouver, Design Tokyo, INDEX Qatar, INDEX Saudi, The Big 5 Construct Dubai, The Big 5 Construct Qatar, Photo LA Los Angeles and international magazines like Art Style. ITSLIQUID Group supports some of the most important no-profit organizations, like UNFCCC – United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, SSCS – Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, One Tree Planted, The Ocean CleanUp and Plastic Oceans, with the goal to increase public awareness about environmental issues. Click here to find out more.

ITSLIQUID GROUP includes a section dedicated to the organization of international art events, managing exhibitions of painting, photography, video art, installation and performance; it organizes solo and collective shows, art residencies and international contests. Its object is to use new technologies to globalize the language of art, to connect artists working in every part of the world.

ITSLIQUID Group manages a variety of art spaces all over the world; among them THE ROOM Contemporary Art Space in the heart of San Marco Square in Venice and different historical buildings, THE LINE Contemporary Art Space in the London city center and other different partners worldwide. Since its beginning, the group has organized more than 250 events all around the world, involving more than 5.000 artists, in more than 60 international venues in Italy, USA, Canada, UK, Spain, France, etc. Most of the last events have been realized in museums (CCCB – Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona in Spain, NCCA – National Center for Contemporary Arts in Moscow, etc.), galleries and private foundations.

ITSLIQUID is based on fluidity, motion, connection and accessibility. Making things easy to do. Welcome.

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OUR LOCATION

Valid World Hall

An international meeting point for those interested in culture and all forms of artistic expression. A place where we strive to find a new form of cooperation in the human universe, a place that acts as a catalyst for creative initiatives and expressions in the search of innovation and excellence. A place where everything is possible.

With more than 250 m2 space, our aim is to create an innovative platform supporting all sorts of cultural initiatives in the city.

Valid World Hall Gallery is located in the heart of Barcelona, 5 minutes’ walk from the Arc de Triomf, less than 1 km far from the Sagrada Familia and Casa Milà. Playa De la Barceloneta and the Porto Olimpic can also be reached in less than 10 minutes by walk. Arc de Triomf metro station is 2 minutes walking distance.