Art Madrid'25 – Plom Gallery in Art Madrid\'15

Now that the fair has just passed and this needed stage to do balance and analysis of achievements and mistakes of this 10th edition starts, from Art Madrid we remain with the fabulous sensation of having counted on an exceptional collaborator: La Plom Gallery. Thank to this gallery we could offer a kids' workshop to complete our parallel activities program.

 

This workshop obeys to the genuine idea and initiative of La Plom gallery, art gallery placed in Barcelona, and with hardly a year of trajectory, that shares with us this spirit that seeks to involve the children and make them take part of art world since the first beginning. La Plom has wanted to apply a new perspective to contemporary art ant to explore the communicative possibilities and the learning capability that kids have throughout activities, workshops and samples with which starting to stimulate their interest and pleasure for plastic disciplines. As its manager, Martha Zimmermann, points out in the presentation text of this space, it is about making profit out of "the power of art like an educational and an human development tool for children, that stimulates the creativity, the imagination, the effort culture and the self-confidence".

 

And for doing so, La Plom develops activities in which "real art" is made, because the proposed activities are addressed by active artists with pedagogical education, which allows them to approach the kids to the techniques they use in a dynamic and funny way to learn playing. Besides, La Plom highly believes in the education in art and the need of publishing the works and their creators in order to improve the interest in the sector and to encourage since the childhood the "little size" collectionism.

 

For Art Madrid, La Plom has organised the workshop "Drawing with machines", led by the artists Gonzalo Elvira, performative and multidisciplinary artist, and Rafa Castañer, illustrator, with the collaboration of the educators Anamusma and Kae Newcomb. During the workshop, the kids had the opportunity of knowing new creative techniques: drawing on a disk, the infinite drawing roll and the manufacture of projectable slides. The activity has place in the resting area of CentroCentro Cibeles the Saturday, 28th of February, and the Sunday, 1st of March, while the art fair was being developed, so the children could visit it after with their parents.

We would like to thank Martha and La Plom for her artistic project and for having brought this workshop that families have so much enjoyed.

 

 

At the most recent edition of Art Madrid, artist Luis Olaso (Bilbao, 1986), represented by Kur Art Gallery (San Sebastián), received the Residency Prize of the Art Madrid Patronage Program. This award, the result of a collaboration between Art Madrid, DOM Art Residence, and the Italian association ExtrArtis, enabled him to undertake an artistic residency in Sorrento (Italy) in August 2025.

Through initiatives like this, the fair reaffirms its support for contemporary creation—a commitment aimed at increasing artists’ visibility and strengthening art collecting through concrete actions such as acquisition prizes, recognition of emerging talents, and international residencies.


Artists in Residence. DOM & ExtrArtis. Image courtesy of Agata D’Esposito.


The DOM & ExtrArtis 2025 Residency Program took place in Sorrento from August 1 to 31, 2025. The artists lived together at Relais La Rupe, a 16th-century villa surrounded by cliffs and centuries-old gardens, which became an ideal setting for experimentation and exchange.

In this edition, residents worked around the theme “Reimagining Genius Loci”, an invitation to reflect on how the movement of people and traditions transforms the “spirit of place.” During the residency, DOM organized two public group exhibitions: the first to present the artists’ previous work, and the second to showcase the projects developed in Sorrento.


Work by Luis Olaso. DOM & ExtrArtis. Image courtesy of Agata D’Esposito.


Luis Olaso’s work moves between expressionist figuration and abstraction, always employing a pictorial language charged with strength and emotion. Initially self-taught, he later graduated in Fine Arts and has developed a solid international career, with exhibitions at venues including JD Malat (London) and Makasiini Contemporary (Turku, Finland), and participation in fairs such as Untitled Miami, Estampa, and Art Madrid itself.

His work is part of prestigious collections, including the Tokyo Contemporary Art Foundation, Fundación SIMCO, and the Provincial Council of Bizkaia, and has been recognized in competitions such as the Reina Sofía Prize for Painting and Sculpture and the Ibercaja Young Painting Prize.

In Sorrento, Olaso found a unique context to expand his pictorial research, engaging in dialogue with the Mediterranean landscape and the region’s historical heritage. The residency provided him with time, resources, and a framework for exchange with other international artists, fostering the production of new works that were later presented in the group exhibitions organized by DOM.


Luis Olaso working on his project. DOM & ExtrArtis. Image courtesy of DOM.

Luis Olaso’s experience at DOM Art Residence concluded with a public showcase of the works produced, reinforcing his presence on the international circuit and consolidating his position as one of the most prominent Basque artists on the contemporary scene.


Through initiatives such as this, Art Madrid demonstrates its active role as a platform for direct support of contemporary creation, creating opportunities for research, production, and intercultural dialogue that extend beyond the fair itself and accompany artists in their professional development.