At Art Madrid, we are delighted to present the fifth edition of our Curated Interview Program. On this occasion, independent curator and art critic Adonay Bermúdez (Lanzarote, Spain, 1985) takes the helm of the program, bringing his extensive international experience and sensitivity to contemporary artistic practices.

Under the title “Conversations with Adonay Bermúdez”, we will explore the work of eight artists featured in the 21st edition of the fair. This program offers the opportunity to engage with their creative processes, understand their sources of inspiration, and learn about their perspectives on contemporary art. In doing so, we reaffirm our commitment to facilitating encounters between the public and artistic practice, providing a space for reflection and dialogue during Art Week.

INVITED ARTISTS

Carmen Baena (Galería BAT Alberto Cornejo), Sergio Rocafort (Shiras Galería), Chamo San (Inéditad Gallery), Cedric Le Corf (Loo & Lou Gallery), Daniel Bum (CLC ARTE), Iyán Castaño (Galería Arancha Osoro), Julián Manzelli (Chu) (g · gallery), and DIMASLA (Diana + Álvaro) (Galería La Mercería)

DIALOGUE AS A CURATORIAL PRACTICE

The interviews included in this selection from Art Madrid’26 form a coherent map of shared concerns embedded in diverse practices, languages, and trajectories. Far from offering a homogeneous narrative, the voices of the eight artists reveal deep affinities around experience, time, and the relationship between artistic making and knowledge. In all cases, art is conceived less as the production of finished objects than as a situated process: a practice of attentiveness that unfolds in dialogue with territory, memory, and the artist’s own vulnerability..

One of the most significant recurring themes is the understanding of territory as an active agent. Whether it is the landscape of southern Spain, sand shaped by the tide, the everyday environment, or the exhibition space, the place ceases to function as a mere backdrop and becomes an interlocutor. This shift entails an ethics of listening: artists do not impose a predetermined form, but work from traces, marks, and temporal sedimentation. Territory thus appears as a living archive, carrying affective, geological, or cultural memories that the artistic gesture activates without closing them off.

Most of the practices presented here are grounded in open methodologies, where initial planning operates as a hypothesis rather than a fixed program. Chance, error, and the unexpected are not mistakes to be corrected, but productive forces that directly contribute to meaning-making. This openness does not imply a lack of rigor but represents a different mode of thought: an embodied knowledge that emerges from doing, repetition, and direct engagement with materials.

In this context, materiality becomes a form of knowledge. Marble and embroidery, pigments exposed to the elements, unstable geometries, silent pictorial surfaces, or repeated figures function as devices for sensitive knowledge. Materials do not illustrate concepts—they produce them. Through them, a constant tension is articulated between control and intuition, formal restraint and affective charge, which underpins both pictorial practices and research closer to performance or ecological concerns.

In response to contemporary acceleration, these works propose active pauses: spaces of duration, waiting, and suspension where the gaze can linger. Silence, stillness, and repetition operate as conditions for expanded perception, where the minimal and seemingly insignificant acquire existential density. In many cases, this slow temporality is connected to autobiographical processes or complex emotional states, making artistic practice a tool for subjective processing and care.

The interviews conducted for Art Madrid’26 highlight the importance of direct dialogue with the artist as a critical tool. This interview model does not seek to illustrate the work from the outside but accompanies its internal logic, allowing the thought sustaining it to emerge in the first person. Delving into the processes, doubts, and decisions that structure artistic practice not only enriches the understanding of the works but also activates a shared space for reflection, where art asserts itself as a form of living, situated, and constantly evolving knowledge.

Adonay Bermúdez. Critic and curator of the Art Madrid’26 Interview Program.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Carmen Baena (Benalúa de Guadix, Granada, 1967) is a multidisciplinary Spanish artist based in Murcia, where she has developed most of her career. A graduate in Fine Arts from the Polytechnic University of Valencia, Baena works with diverse techniques such as marble sculpture, embroidery on paper and canvas, and photographic experimentation, combining them in a profound investigation into the habitability of the body, time, and space.

Her work draws inspiration from nature and the landscapes of her childhood in Granada, creating spiritual and sensory landscapes that invite viewers into intimate, poetic, and enigmatic spaces. In recent series, color, circles, and stitched thread sutures combine to convey sensations of movement, memory, and emotion, generating immersive visual experiences. Carmen Baena has participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Spain and abroad, and her work is included in public and private collections, including institutions in Murcia and Valencia, local town halls, and museums such as the Postal Museum of Madrid.

Sergio Rocafort (Valencia, 1995) holds a degree in Fine Arts and a Master’s in Artistic Production from the Universitat Politècnica de València. He has exhibited his work at Shiras Galería, the Centro Cultural La Nau, Centro del Carmen de Cultura Contemporánea, Galería 9, Las Naves, and Palacio Marqués del Campo, all in Valencia. He has also participated in art fairs such as the X Feria Marte in Castellón and the XXXII Estampa Fair in Madrid.

Rocafort has been a finalist in prominent competitions, including the III María Isabel Comengé Painting Biennial and the XX Painting Prize of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Carlos. He has received honorable mentions in the XXV National Painting Prize Fundación Mainel and the LXXX Premi Centelles, as well as awards such as the XXVII Ciutat d’Algemesí Painting Prize and the XIII Manolo Valdés Visual Arts Competition, among many others.

Chamo San (Barcelona, 1987) studied Fine Arts at the University of Barcelona and the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, but it was only after his formal training that he began to develop his own artistic language. As an illustrator, he has collaborated with numerous prestigious clients and brands over 15 years, and as an artist, he has published books and exhibited his work in solo and group exhibitions across Europe and North America.

His work moves between drawing and painting, often exploring self-publishing and graphic work. His production is characterized by a strong figurative style combined with technical and narrative explorations that originate in line and texture and gradually evolve toward brushwork and staining. His universe is nourished by notes made in small sketchbooks from direct observation of his surroundings and personal experiences.

Cedric Le Corf (Bühl, Germany, 1985) graduated with honors in 2009 from the École Européenne Supérieure d’Art de Lorient (France). He lives and works between Brittany and other European contexts, developing an artistic practice deeply connected to sculpture and reflections on the body, landscape, and memory. His work engages in constant research on materiality and image, where the anatomical and the territorial intertwine as metaphors for the human condition. Influenced by the Rhenish and Armorican legacy and confronted with the pathos of Grünewald (Baldung Grien), the hanged figures from Jacques Callot’s Les Misères de la Guerre, Ankou, and the dance macabre of Kernascléden, as well as the horrors of the Sobibor mass graves, Le Corf seeks, through adherence to a motif, to mitigate the weight of the subjects addressed in sculpture, painting, or printmaking.

He has undertaken several artist residencies, including the Fondation Dufraine in Chars, the Académie des Beaux-Arts (2016–2018), the Spitzberg Expedition Residency (2017), and was a resident at the Casa de Velázquez in Madrid (2018–2019) and the Miró Foundation in Palma de Mallorca (2019). In 2017, he was awarded the Georges Coulon Prize (Sculpture) by the Institut de France – Académie des Beaux-Arts. He has taken part in numerous solo and group exhibitions in France, Germany, Spain, and Belgium.

Daniel Bum (Villena, 1994) holds a degree in Fine Arts from the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV) and develops his pictorial practice within the contemporary framework of new figuration, drawing on influences from art brut, naïve aesthetics, manga, and urban art. His work creates a hybrid territory where disparate visual references coexist under a deeply personal and subjective narrative logic.

Far from mimetic representation, his canvases do not depict real scenes but reconfigure fragments of memory, emotional states, and thoughts through a direct and deliberately schematic visual language. In this symbolic construction, lived experience intertwines with fiction, generating images full of ambiguity and affective resonance. His compositions are inhabited by solitary figures, depicted frontally, with absent gazes and minimal gestures emphasizing vulnerability. These seemingly approachable characters reveal, however, an enigmatic dimension marked by latent tension. This ambivalence—between tenderness and unease, the familiar and the inexplicable—is a key expressive feature of his work.

He has participated in exhibitions and art fairs such as Obertura Carabanchel 2025 and Apertura Madrid 2025 alongside the Valencian gallery CLC Arte, and in Zokei with CLC Arte. In 2024, he held his first solo exhibition, Mamá, estoy bien, in Valencia, and participated in Detrás de la Piel at the FIC Contemporary Art Festival in Villena.

Iyán Castaño (Oviedo, 1996) graduated in Fine Arts from UPV/EHU (2022) and is a master printmaker in engraving and printmaking techniques from EAO (2018). His practice explores the relationship between nature, sea, and territory, primarily through painting and installation. He has received the Asturias Joven Prize in Visual Arts, Second Prize in the XX Casimiro Baragaña National Contemporary Art Competition, and production grants from Caja Rural and the Gijón City Council, among others. His work is part of the Artistic Heritage of the Spanish Royal Family and the collection of the Museo de Bellas Artes de Asturias, as well as other institutional collections in Europe and the Americas. He has been a finalist in competitions such as the LVI International Art Competition of Luarca, Nicanor Piñole, and Acor Castilla y León.

He has held solo exhibitions at spaces including Sala Borrón, Casa de Cultura de Llanes, Espacio Cultural El Liceo, Galería Arancha Osoro, Kultur Leioa, and Sala Lai..., and has participated in fairs such as Estampa and Art Madrid. His work has been curated by Natalia Alonso, Luis Feas, Santiago Martínez, Ainhoa Janices, and Eliza Southwood, and he has undertaken artistic residencies in Spain and Ecuador.

Julián Manzelli (Chu) (Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1974) is a multidisciplinary visual artist whose practice explores the intersection of urban life, science, and nature through geometric-expressionist constructions oscillating between figurative and abstract. He conceived the studio as an experimental laboratory, developing work in painting, sculpture, object-making, printmaking, and public space through muralism and interventions. He currently lives in Barcelona.

He studied at the Faculty of Architecture, Design, and Urbanism at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA), where he taught for over twelve years. Since 1998, he has been part of the DOMA collective, pioneers of conceptual urban art in Latin America, with works included in international collections and museums such as MoMA (New York), MALBA (Buenos Aires), MAR (Rio de Janeiro), and MARCO (Rosario).

In his independent career, he has exhibited at institutions such as MASP (São Paulo), MARCO (Monterrey), La Casa Encendida (Madrid), and CEART Fuenlabrada (Madrid), establishing himself as a key figure in contemporary art combining conceptual rigor and aesthetic exploration across multiple media and spaces.

DIMASLA (Valencia, 2018), the collective formed by Diana Lozano and Álvaro Jaén, develops its practice around reflections on inhabiting the world more harmoniously, understanding reality as an interconnected network of beings, spaces, and objects. Inspired by authors such as Nancy, Bachelard, and Dewey, their work is based on co-creation with the environment, where elements such as atmosphere, flora, fauna, and seasonal change act as active agents. Projects like Mono are not aware of this direct relationship between painting and landscape.

Trained in Fine Arts with a Master’s in Artistic Production from UPV, complemented by residencies in Italy and Chile, their trajectory has been recognized with awards such as the 1st Painting Prize from the University of Murcia (2025), the Arte en la Casa Bardín Prize (2023), and grants from the Spanish Ministry of Culture (2020). They have held solo exhibitions in Valencia and Alicante, participated in fairs such as Art Basel Miami Beach and Untitled Miami, and were part of the RinkoKaku Project in Japan. Their work is included in collections such as the Generalitat Valenciana, DKV, Banc Sabadell, Fundación Gabarrón, and the University of Murcia.

Adonay Bermúdez. Independent curator and art critic.

ABOUT ADONAY BERMÚDEZ

Adonay Bermúdez (Lanzarote, Spain, 1985) has curated exhibitions for MEIAC (Spain), Centre del Carme (Spain), Casa África (Spain), Centro Cultural de España en México, Museo Barjola (Spain), the National Museum of Costa Rica, Sala Díaz (USA), CAAM (Spain), the Museum of Contemporary Art and Design of Costa Rica, Centro de Cultura Contemporánea Condeduque (Spain), the Instituto Cervantes in Rome (Italy), Bòlit Centre d’Art Contemporani (Spain), DA2 (Spain), the X Biennale di Soncino (Italy), Artpace San Antonio (USA), MUDAS – Museu de Arte Contemporânea da Madeira (Portugal), Centro de Cultura Digital (Mexico), TEA Tenerife Espacio de las Artes (Spain), the Centro de Arte Contemporáneo de Quito (Ecuador), and ExTeresa Arte Actual (Mexico), among others.

He served as Director of the International Video Art Festival Entre Islas (2014–2017), was a guest curator of PlanoLisboa 2016 (Portugal), a member of the Scientific Committee of Over The Real International Videoart Festival (Italy, 2016, 2017, and 2018), curator of Contemporary Art Month San Antonio (Texas, USA) in 2018, collaborating curator at the César Manrique Foundation (Spain, 2019–2024), curator of INJUVE 2022 (Spanish Government), and Artistic Director of the 11th Lanzarote Art Biennial 2022/2023.

More recently, he has been awarded the Line 2 Curatorial Competition of Casal Solleric, Palma de Mallorca (Spain, 2020), the Cultural Projects Competition Gran Canaria Espacio Digital (Spain, 2020), the Artistic Research Grant from CAAM – Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno (Spain, 2020), Komisario Berriak at Tabakalera (Spain, 2021), the 5th Curatorial Competition of the Valencian Community (Spain, 2023), and the 4th Curatorial Open Call of Nebrija University (Spain, 2025).

He is currently an art critic for ABC Cultural and Revista Segno. He has given lectures and workshops at the Universidad del Atlántico (Colombia), MACRO Museo d’Arte Contemporanea di Roma (Italy), Complutense University of Madrid (Spain), and the Universidade da Madeira (Portugal), among others. He has also received artist-in-residence grants from The Window Paris (France), Foksal Gallery (Poland), Les Abattoirs (France), SOMA (Mexico), The Casa Chuck Residency (USA), Plataforma Caníbal (Colombia), and No Lugar (Ecuador), among others.

Contemporary art has ceased to be an exclusive territory reserved for elites and has become an increasingly democratic and accessible space. In the context of fairs such as Art Madrid, which in 2026 brings together more than 200 artists from five continents, a new generation of collectors is emerging—one that challenges the traditional codes of the art market. But how do you make the leap from admirer to collector? What do you need to know before acquiring your first artwork?

The image of the art collector has historically been associated with great fortunes, multimillion-euro auctions, and inaccessible masterpieces. However, this perception is changing radically. Today’s contemporary art market offers a wide range of proposals that suit virtually any budget, from works by emerging artists to limited editions by established creators. .

At Art Madrid, for example, galleries presenting young talents coexist with those representing artists with consolidated careers. This diversity allows first-time buyers to find meaningful works without needing unlimited capital. What matters is not how much you invest, but why you do it, and how that piece resonates with your life, your space, and your concerns.

Experience in the art world shows that a collection is not defined by the monetary value of the works it contains, but by the coherence and strength of the narrative they build together. Understanding this frees emerging collectors from the pressure to succeed according to investment logic and encourages them to rely on their own aesthetic judgment and the emotional connection they establish with the works.

HOW TO START A COLLECTION

Define Your Orientation: Passion vs. Investment

Before acquiring your first work, it is essential to ask yourself what you are looking for in collecting. There are two main approaches which, although they can coexist, lead down different paths:

Collecting driven by passion is guided by emotional connection, aesthetic pleasure, and the desire to live surrounded by works that speak to you. This approach is more intuitive and personal and, paradoxically, often proves to be more successful economically in the long term because it is rooted in genuine conviction.

Collecting as an investment requires more technical knowledge of the market, monitoring trends, understanding artists’ and galleries’ trajectories, and having a strategic vision. Although art has proven to be an interesting alternative investment—especially in times of economic uncertainty—it requires patience and a tolerance for risk.

Most successful collectors combine both dimensions: they buy what moves them, while also developing a critical eye to identify works with potential for appreciation. The key is not to be driven solely by market opportunism, because art that does not move you is unlikely to hold your interest when trends change.

EDUCATE YOURSELF BEFORE BUYING

Knowledge is your best tool. Before acquiring works, take time to:

Visit exhibitions regularly. Not only in commercial galleries, but also in museums, independent spaces, and art centers. This will help you develop your own aesthetic criteria and understand which proposals truly resonate with you.

Research artists. Read about their careers, influences, and creative processes. In the digital age, most artists are present on social media, where they share daily work, sketches, and reflections. This transparency makes it easier to connect more deeply with their practice.

Understand the market. Observe prices in different galleries, learn what factors influence valuation (artist’s career, technique, dimensions, limited edition versus unique piece), and become familiar with how galleries and fairs operate.

Talk to gallerists. Gallerists are essential allies. Their job is not only to sell, but to educate, connect, and build long-term relationships. A good gallerist will guide you toward works that match your interests and accompany you in the development of your collection.

EVALUATING A WORK: BEYOND “I LIKE IT”

When a work captures your attention, it is important to go beyond the initial emotional impression and ask yourself some key questions:

Coherence in the Artist’s Trajectory

Is this work part of a sustained line of research, or is it an isolated experiment? Artists with coherent proposals over time tend to have greater projection. Look for a logical evolution in their work, participation in relevant exhibitions, awards or grants, and representation by established galleries.

This does not mean you should reject the work of very young or highly experimental artists. On the contrary, some of the greatest successes in collecting come from early support of emerging talents. However, such a bet should be based on informed intuition, not mere novelty.

Technical and Conceptual Quality

Contemporary art has greatly expanded the boundaries of what we consider “technique,” incorporating everything from installation to digital art. Nevertheless, each discipline has its own standards of excellence. A painting should demonstrate mastery of color, composition, and material; a sculpture, an understanding of space and materials; a photograph, control of light and framing; a conceptual work, rigor in the development of the idea.

Beyond technique, ask yourself: What is this work saying? Does it offer an original perspective on something that interests me? Is there conceptual depth, or is it purely decorative? There are no absolute right answers, but asking these questions will help you make more conscious decisions.

Suitability for the Space

A practical but fundamental consideration: where will this work live? Art needs room to breathe, appropriate light, and a context that enhances it. A monumental work can feel overwhelming in a small apartment, while an intimate piece may get lost in a large space. Many galleries offer virtual visualization services or even temporary loans so you can experience the work in your space before committing.

Practical Aspects of Collecting

When you acquire a work, you should receive:

Certificate of authenticity: A document signed by the artist or gallery that certifies the authorship of the piece, its dimensions, technique, year of creation, and, in the case of editions, its number within the edition.

Invoice: Legally required and essential for proving ownership and purchase value, particularly relevant for insurance and potential resale.

Conservation information: Each technique and material requires specific care. Ask how the work should be preserved (light, humidity, temperature conditions) and whether it needs periodic maintenance.

Insurance and Protection: Even if your collection is just beginning, it is advisable to take out specific insurance for artworks. Most home insurance policies do not adequately cover this type of asset. There are specialized policies that protect against theft, accidental damage, fire, and other risks, with reasonable premiums for modest collections.

In addition to insurance, consider basic conservation measures: avoid hanging works in areas with excessive humidity, direct sunlight, or sudden temperature changes. For works on paper (photographs, prints, drawings), framing with UV-protective glass and acid-free matting is essential.

Legal and Tax Advice

In Spain, artworks have a specific tax treatment. The applicable VAT rate is 21%, although there are exemptions in certain cases. If your collection grows and you eventually decide to sell pieces, you will need to consider the tax implications of capital gains. For larger collections, it can be useful to consult advisors specialized in artistic heritage, who can guide you on tax benefits (donations to museums, long-term loans), inheritance planning, and asset protection structures.

Building Relationships Within the Art Ecosystem

Collecting is not a solitary activity, but a deeply social one. Some tips for integrating into the community:

Attend openings and events. Exhibition openings are opportunities to meet artists, other collectors, critics, and curators. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or express genuine interest.

Join collectors’ associations. Many cities have organized groups that arrange studio visits, talks with experts, and trips to international fairs. These spaces facilitate learning and networking.

Be loyal to your galleries. If a gallery has advised you well and you feel comfortable with its program, maintain the relationship long-term. Gallerists tend to reserve the best pieces or opportunities for their regular collectors.

Value Beyond Price

Finally, it is important to remember that the true value of collecting goes beyond economics. Living with art transforms everyday spaces into places of reflection and beauty. A work on your wall is a daily reminder of an emotion, an idea, a vision of the world that once moved you enough to want to live with it.

Collecting is also a way of actively participating in the cultural ecosystem. When you buy the work of an emerging artist, you help them continue creating. When you support an independent gallery, you help sustain spaces of experimentation. When you lend your works for an exhibition or eventually donate them to a public institution, you contribute to the collective heritage

At fairs like Art Madrid, where proposals from different generations, geographies, and artistic languages coexist, you have the opportunity to explore, compare, and discover. There is no rush. Collecting is a long-term journey in which each acquisition is a chapter in a personal story you are building. The key is to begin with curiosity, humility, and the certainty that art, more than a luxury, is a necessity that profoundly enriches life.