The Crystal Gallery of CentroCentro Cibeles, a space in which the Art Madrid Contemporary Art Fair has been held for the fifth consecutive year, has received more than 20,000 visitors, between Wednesday, February 21 and Sunday, February 25, among which it has increased up to a 20% the percentage of professional public and collectors, both private and institutional.

Photo by Julia Mateo from Madphoto

For this 13th edition, the selection committee of Art Madrid’18, formed by the international art market specialist Ángel Samblancat; the theorist and art critic Alfonso de la Torre, the gallery owner Javier López Vélez, from 3 Punts (Barcelona) and, the independent curator Carlos Delgado Mayordomo, assessed more than a hundred proposals to give shape to a program with quality and potential of sales, demanding to the galleries coherent and avant-garde proposals.

“I liked the hyperactivity of the fair and the ambient of permanent enthusiasm and, of course, the meeting space that is created between established artists and new emerging voices. Art Madrid has become a very different proposal, in the sense of distinguished, in the hectic artistic February”, says Alfonso de la Torre. On the other hand, Samblancat highlights “the best selection of proposals by exhibitors at the fair and greater openness to international galleries, for example in Latin America with magnificent representations such as Collage Havana of Cuba, Italy with Casa Falconieri of Cagliari, Asia with Yiri Arts of Taipei and his new contributions, from Germany with Schmalfuss and Robert Drees, from Ukraine with Nebo Art Gallery from Kiev and his exciting fabrics of exquisite talent”.

Photo by Miguel Ángel Satué from Madphoto

ENTHUSIASM AMONG COLLECTORS AND FEATURED ARTISTS

Frasco Pinto and Pedro Pinto, directors of the Artizar de Tenerife Gallery, highlight the variety of the public in “a very visited fair, with art lovers of all kinds. Veteran collectors, young collectors, visitors with no more aim than to see and enjoy art and curious". In terms of sales, his proposal, a ONE PROJECT by Carlos Nicanor “has covered and exceeded expectations. The truth is that it has worked very well”, they say. Jaime Sordo, president of the Association of Collectors 9915 was one of the collectors who chose a piece of Nicanor for his collection “Los Bragales”. For the gallerist Arancha Osoro from Oviedo, the balance has been very positive and “adespite bringing a new and personal choice, difficult in some case to defend in such a large market, we are happy because we have sold work of all our artists, highlighting especially the pieces of artists that have gone to private collections, such as an acrylic by Jezabel Rodríguez, a large-scale work by Nuria Formenti and a piece by the sculptor Kiko Miyares ”.

Along with the artists already mentioned, there are other artists appreciated by the collectors and buyers of this edition, such as the painter Lino Lago (with several pieces sold with the Moret Art gallery in A Coruña), Taiwanese Lai Wei-Yu drom the Yiri Arts gallery (the youngest painter in the collection of the Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts), the sculptor Candela Muniozguren who sold several pieces of her ONE PROJECT with the gallery Bea Villamarín, the Korean Joo Eun Bae, an authentic revelation from the MH Art Gallery in Bilbao, Carmen Calvo, National Fine Arts Prize, from which several collages were sold in the Art Lounge gallery in Lisbon, or Roldán Lauzán from the Cuban gallery Collage Habana, one of whose portraits is already part of the Colección Bassat.

Lino Lago

1.Rojo, 2017

Oil on linen

30 x 24cm

Candela Muniozguren

Tetrix 04, 2017

Lacquered steel

50 x 20cm

Lai Wei-Yu

After School Fight, 2017

Oil on canvas

116 x 91cm

For Sara Joudi, from the Galería Shiras Valencia) for the first time in Art Madrid, “there was a profile of new collectors and occasional buyers who were very interested in our proposal and acquired work. There was a favorable environment for the sale and very positive comments on the general proposal of the fair. We sold works of all the artists we carry. “ From another of the new galleries, Diwap Gallery (Sevilla), his co-director Juan Cruz says that his time at Art Madrid has been "a rewarding experience seeing how the work of urban artists and environments different from the usual one is being introduced, it’s a slow road but you have to do it and be patient and Art Madrid has made a very good bet “.

Javier López, from Galeria 3 Punts highlights an “increasingly interesting and younger audience” that surprised them as potential buyers because in this edition they have “exceeded sales expectations”. The 3 Punts proposal included, among others, Okuda San Miguel, Samuel Salcedo, Gerard Mas, Mark Jenkins and Ramon Surinyac. In this sense, the German gallery Robert Drees, reference space for contemporary art in Hannover, highlights “the energy and enthusiasm of buyers and art lovers among the public of Art Madrid” without forgetting “the space, an unparalleled location to show art”.

Pepa Salas

Alles wird gut, 2017

Acrylic on canvas

80 x 80cm

Okuda San Miguel

Punk Horse, 2017

Synthetic enamel and fiberglass

68 x 60cm

The proposal of the galería Luisa Pita, according to the gallerist, “has captured the attention of collectors and entities such as the Caja Burgos Foundation with whom I have closed an exhibition project for Christian Villamide, or collaborations with two architectural studios to integrate works by Pierre Louis Geldenhuys in his next projects”, says the gallerist.

This possibility of new projects, the meeting with other professionals, is one of the experiences the artists most appreciate. “EIt is the perfect link to contact other galleries, private collectors, share experiences with other artists... Participate in Art Madrid opens a range of possibilities for any artist, motivating him to continue creating with the spirit and perspective of being able to live of art”, explains the Spanish Pepa Salas, represented by the Robert Drees gallery.

For Rubén Martín de Lucas, one of the most valued artists in the latest editions of Art Madrid with the BAT alberto cornejo gallery, the fairs “are a great energizer, especially at the art market level (necessary to support the entire structure). It serves very well as a complement to the more leisurely and profound work carried out by the artists in the galleries and institutions. In addition, being able to meet the public, have their opinion, have their opinion firsthand... shortens the distance between artist and audience. The image of the deified artist in his pulpit is deceptive and unreal. “

Rubén Martín de Lucas

Large Wild Garden 03, 2017

Crayon, oil and enamel

180 x 240cm

“It’s one of the fairs where I’ve most socialized and I’ve felt very comfortable in contact with the public, I’ve felt very loved. I really liked participating in one of the best fairs in my country, championing a series of artists that symbolize certain changes in the art market, “ adds Okuda San Miguel, Guest Artist at Art Madrid’18.

Okuda San Miguel, Photo by Miguel Ángel Satué from Madphoto

GUESTS AND PERSONALITIES

The official inauguration of Art Madrid’18 was attended by, among other personalities, the ambassadors of Germany, Brazil, Ukraine, France, Switzerland, Sweden, Italy, Chile, Russia, the ambassador of Costa Rica, Mexico, as well as Mr. Pedro Berhan da Costa, Culture Counselor of the Embassy of Portugal, Mrs. Natasha Díaz, First Secretary of the Embassy of Cuba, Mr. Antonio Lee, Cultural Attaché of the Economic and Cultural Office of Taipei, Mr. Ryan Matheny Garrido, Deputy Cultural Attaché of the United States Embassy, a good example of the importance that the fair already has among collectors and foreign professionals.

On the part of the local institutions have visited the fair Dª. Manuela Carmena, Mayor of Madrid, D. Óscar Sáenz de Santa María, Director of Cultural Industries and the Book of MECD, Mr. Luis Serrano, of the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage of the Community of Madrid, as well as Dª. Elisa de Cabo de la Vega Deputy Director General for the Protection of the Historical Heritage of the Ministry of Culture MECD.

Dª Manuela Carmena and the artist Antonyo Marest. Photo by Sara Ortega from Madphoto

As a representative of cultural institutions and foundations: Luis Lafuente Batanero, General Director of Fine Arts and Cultural Heritage, Javier del Campo of Fundación Caja de Burgos, Dª. Leticia Martín, Manager Atlantic Center of Modern Art-CAAM, Mr. D. Santiago Miralles, General Director of the Casa de América, Dª. María Brancós Barti, Head of Exhibitions of the Fundación Telefónica and Ms. Rosario López Director of Cultural Projects of the Banco de Santander Foundation.

The painting of Daniel Bum (Villena, Alicante, 1994) takes shape as a space for subjective elaboration, where the figure emerges not so much as a representational motif but as a vital necessity. The repetition of this frontal, silent character responds to an intimate process: painting becomes a strategy for navigating difficult emotional experiences—an insistent gesture that accompanies and alleviates feelings of loneliness. In this sense, the figure acts as a mediator between the artist and a complex emotional state, linking the practice of painting to a reconnection with childhood and to a vulnerable dimension of the self.

The strong autobiographical dimension of his work coexists with a formal distance that is not the result of conscious planning, but rather functions as a protective mechanism. Visual restraint, an apparent compositional coolness, and an economy of means do not neutralize emotion; instead, they contain it, avoiding the direct exposure of the traumatic. In this way, the tension between affect and restraint becomes a structural feature of his artistic language. Likewise, the naïve and the disturbing coexist in his painting as inseparable poles, reflecting a subjectivity permeated by mystery and unconscious processes. Many images emerge without a clearly defined prior meaning and only reveal themselves over time, when temporal distance allows for the recognition of the emotional states from which they arose.

The Long Night. Oil, acrylic, and charcoal on canvas. 160 × 200 cm. 2024.

The human figure appears frequently in your work: frontal, silent, suspended. What interests you about this presence that seems both affirmative and absent?

I wouldn’t say that anything in particular interests me. I began painting this figure because there were emotions I couldn’t understand and a feeling that was very difficult for me to process. This character emerged during a very complicated moment in my life, and the act of making it—and remaking it, repeating it again and again—meant that, during the process, I didn’t feel quite so alone. At the same time, it kept me fresh and connected me to an inner child who was broken at that moment, helping me get through the experience in a slightly less bitter way.

Santito. Acrylic and oil on canvas. 81 × 65 cm. 2025.

There is a strong affective dimension in your work, but also a calculated distance, a kind of formal coldness. What role does this tension between emotion and restraint play?

I couldn’t say exactly what role that tension plays. My painting is rooted in the autobiographical, in memory, and in situations I have lived through that were quite traumatic for me. Perhaps, as a protective mechanism—to prevent direct access to that vulnerability, or to keep it from becoming harmful—that distance appears unconsciously. It is not something planned or controlled; it simply emerges and remains there.

Night Painter. Acrylic on canvas. 35 × 27 cm. 2025.

Your visual language oscillates between the naïve and the unsettling, the familiar and the strange. How do these tensions coexist for you, and what function do they serve in your visual exploration?

I think it reflects who I am. One could not exist without the other. The naïve could not exist without the unsettling; for me, they necessarily go hand in hand. I am deeply drawn to mystery and to the act of painting things that even I do not fully understand. Many of the expressions or portraits I create emerge from the unconscious; they are not planned. It is only afterwards that I begin to understand them—and almost never immediately. A considerable amount of time always passes before I can recognize how I was feeling at the moment I made them.

Qi. Acrylic on canvas. 81 × 65 cm. 2025.

The formal simplicity of your images does not seem to be a matter of economy, but of concentration. What kind of aesthetic truth do you believe painting can reach when it strips itself of everything superfluous?

I couldn’t say what aesthetic truth lies behind that simplicity. What I do know is that it is something I need in order to feel calm. I feel overwhelmed when there are too many elements in a painting, and I have always been drawn to the minimal—to moments when there is little, when there is almost nothing. I believe that this stripping away allows me to approach painting from a different state: more focused, more silent. I can’t fully explain it, but it is there that I feel able to work with greater clarity.

Crucifixion. Acrylic on canvas. 41 × 33 cm. 2025.

To what extent do you plan your work, and how much space do you leave for the unexpected—or even for mistakes?

I usually feel more comfortable leaving space for the unexpected. I am interested in uncertainty; having everything under control strikes me as rather boring. I have tried it on some occasions, especially when I set out to work on a highly planned series, with fixed sketches that I then wanted to translate into painting, but it was not something I identified with. I felt that a fundamental part of the process disappeared: play—that space in which painting can surprise even myself. For that reason, I do not tend to plan too much, and when I do, it is in a very simple way: a few lines, a plane of color. I prefer everything to happen within the painting itself.