Kreisler, Schmalfuss, Sâo Mamede, Shiras and Kur Art Galleries

Since the beginning of the last century, especially after the important Russian Constructivism movement and the mythical Bauhaus School, there have been many creators who have continued working on geometric patterns either by their infinite combinations and artistic, although sometimes purely aesthetic, social or conceptual potential. In this new edition of Art Madrid you can enjoy a very particular scene of the most modern geometric abstract art.

Carmen Otero, "Reconstrucción 7", cedar wood and polychrome, 2018. Galería Kreisler.

In this sense, the works of five artists stand out within the selection presented by the Kreisler Gallery (Madrid). The work of Ramón Urbán is marked by a pure and resounding formal synthesis, essentiality always impregnated by a strong emotional character that pieces like “Sigo en la sombra lleno de luz” (2018) shows, presented in an accurate dialogue with the sculptures of the series "Reconstructión" (2018) by Carmen Otero. Sculpted in some of the most beautiful woods, they are works in which the designs of the Bauhaus School resonate -now more than ever in consonance with Alma Siedhoff-Buscher's famous designs- here embodied in modular portraits that the artist composes and decomposes delicately.

Juan Gerstl, "La alcachofa", aluminium with direct UV printing, 2018. Galería Kreisler.

Very different are the formal investigations of Miki (Guillermo Gutiérrez), oriented towards the dominance of the spatial properties of the void: his monochromatic bronzes are rhythmic, whimsical and present twisting forms. Also geometrical and apparently volumetric are the works of Juan Gerstl, while the paintings by Gerard Fernández Rico capture fluid evoking. Kreisler also includes in its proposal personal works, very characterized by a narrative component, of two artists: on the one hand, the daily dreamed stories of Liliana Golubinsky, and on the other, the more colourful and amusing, made by the versatile Sawe.

Willi Siber, "Wall object", lacquered multiple pieces, 2016. Galería Schmalfuss.

More geometric creations are presented with Schmalfuss (Berlin), a gallery that presents some of the celebrated “objects” and more recent works by Willi Siber, always lacquered and bright. Equally radiant are the steel sculptures by Carlo Borer, with rounded, sensual, even sometimes voluptuous shapes, in which the spectator will be able to find his distorted reflection, similar to those presented by Jörg Bach, works composed from energy centres to which their volumetric termination always return.

Thomas Röthel, "Drehung", steel, 2015. Galería Schmalfuss.

A very different way of working industrial materials is that of sculptor Thomas Röthel, more interested in the rectilinear profiles, most of the times interrupted by distorted and curved elements that question the rational logic. In addition, in the Schmalfuss space you can see the expressionist paintings of the painter Cristina Canale; and the latest sculptures by Oliver Czarnetta, mysterious stories encapsulated in resin in which he reflects once more on the passing of time and our ways of perception.

Georg Scheele

Rose, 2018

Marble

153 x 70cm

Susana Chasse

No Land. No Thing #04, 2018

Acrylic and graphite on MDF

140 x 140cm

The São Mamede Gallery (Lisbon / Oporto) arrives at Art Madrid with a wide abstract and geometric languages proposal. Some of these are sculptures in marble by Georg Scheele and Matthias Contzen, minimalist abstractions of nature by Scheele and more organic and meticulous works by Contzen. Thousands of either steel rods or piano strings make up the structural pieces of David Moreno that, although volumetric as the artist himself affirms, are pieces made “in the purpose of drawing sculptures”. The pictorial commitment of the Portuguese gallery is also led by abstraction: recent works such as Susana Chasse or Rui Tavares, centered in the line, the layout and the possibilities of a small color palette, together with the paintings of Gil Maia, where the palette is extended and the textures become leading roles. São Mamede Gallery proposal is closed with two more symbolic and very different authors: the gestural González Bravo and the more dreamlike Ana Maria.

Nanda Botella, "Grietas, franjas y color", mix media, 2018. Shiras Galería.

Shiras Galería (Valencia) also offers quite a broad exhibit that consists of the works of six artists from Valencia. In its space, you will see the iron pieces of one of the pioneers of the so-called New Spanish Sculpture, Miquel Navarro. An artist undoubtedly connected with the creators of the Avant-garde. Through their work, we can delve into their personal and distinctive vertical geometrical precision. The latest works by Nanda Botella are also determined by vertical compositions; while the expressive brushstroke of Juan Olivares appears to disrupt all this order. The pictorial gesture, the brushing or scraping, passionate “emotional traces” dominate his colourful paintings, more recently also decomposed and framed in methacrylate.

Juan Olivares, "Sin Título", vinyl paint on heavyweight paper, 2018. Shiras Galería.

The diverse proposal of Shiras is completed with three very different painters. On the one hand, the essentiality of the round shapes, dominated by flat colours, which continue to distinguish the oils made by the great painter Rosa Torres.On the other hand, we have the oil paintings of José Saborit, landscapes of essential horizons where the painter demonstrates his excellent ability to capture atmospheres. And finally, the gallery presents Horacio Silva’s paintings on sheet metal, a symbolic approach in which the author highlights the sensitive qualities of this cold material.

Íñigo Arregi, "Sin Título", weathering steel, 2018. Kur Art Gallery.

Perhaps the most absolute geometric proposal is that of Kur Art Gallery (Guipúzcoa), featuring only local artists, great followers of the unique Basque creation of the twentieth century. We will see the volumetric collages, works in weathering steel, of Íñigo Arregi, canvases in which he continues to investigate the ways in which geometric forms are interconnected and interwoven. Likewise, the zinc pieces of Iñaki Olazaba are presented, absolute in their presence as in their contours; also part of the sculptural work of the landscape painter Aitor Etxeberría. Kur closes its exhibit for Art Madrid with two painters: J. Ramón Elorza, of which they present some of the more expressive works, featuring floating geometric objects; and Bingen de Pedro, who will surprise us again with his architectural trompe l'oeil. As the artist explained, when working on several canvases at the same time, contaminations arise between them, revealing relationships born from the way in which he orders and places the canvases, a random method that provides the final paintings with an impressive volume.

In short, an extensive group of artists that work from geometry and that we can enjoy in this unique occasion in the new Art Madrid edition.

LECTURAS. CURATED WALKTHROUGHS BY ART MADRID'26

Lecturas: Curated Walkthroughs by Art Madrid’26 is a cultural mediation initiative designed to bring audiences closer to the exhibitions presented by the participating galleries in this edition. Its aim is to transform the experience of the fair into an opportunity to reflect on the work of the artists featured, to analyze contemporary issues through their works, and to awaken new perspectives in society—thus fostering a critical and contextualized understanding of contemporary art as an instrument for cultural and social dialogue.

In this edition, art historians and cultural communicators Zuriñe Lafón and Marisol Salanova will address, from complementary approaches, diverse perspectives on contemporary creation and its impact within today’s social context.

Each thematic walkthrough will be structured around a carefully curated selection of ten works, accompanied by a solid curatorial discourse aimed at deepening their analysis, context, and significance. Beyond aesthetic contemplation, these guided visits will promote a critical understanding of contemporary art, facilitating direct dialogue between the audience and the curators, and encouraging a participatory and enriching experience.

With this third edition, Lecturas: Curated Walkthroughs x Art Madrid consolidates Art Madrid’s commitment to cultural mediation and the dissemination of contemporary art, offering an immersive proposal that expands interpretative frameworks and fosters the inclusion of new audiences within today’s artistic landscape.

CONSTRUCTIONS OF THE VISIBLE. CURATED WALKTHROUGH BY ZURIÑE LAFÓN

Constructions of the Visible proposes a journey shaped by one central idea: every image is a way of organizing the visible. Rather than understanding abstraction as a withdrawal from the world and figuration as fidelity to reality, this itinerary presents both as perceptual strategies. They are not opposing styles, but different ways of ordering experience. Each artist deploys a distinct strategy that affects our way of looking. Through framing, color, repetition, geometry, or fragmentation, the works do not merely show something; they position us within a particular mode of relating to the visible. They do not simply represent the world—they construct an experience from it.

As the viewer moves through the selection, they encounter different intensities of mediation. Some pieces begin with recognizable images—bodies, spaces, scenes—that appear to offer a direct relationship with reality. Yet as the gaze lingers, it becomes evident that this familiarity is carefully articulated. The rhythm of forms, the distribution of color, the organization of space, or the repetition of certain elements reveal that even the most seemingly transparent image is sustained by an underlying structure.

Other works, by contrast, reduce or transform figurative reference almost to the point of dissolution. Where the recognizable world appears to disappear, the constructive dimension of the image emerges forcefully. Geometry, gesture, or chromatic vibration do not function as an escape from reality, but as intensified forms of the world’s own appearance. Abstraction ceases to be perceived as distance and instead manifests as another way of sustaining reality—of making it appear under different conditions.

The walkthrough adopts a circular structure: it begins and concludes with the same work. This gesture does not seek repetition, but transformation. After passing through different works, different configurations of the visible—from the recognizable to the apparently abstract—the initial image can no longer be read as a faithful representation of reality. It is revealed as yet another construction within a broad field of perceptual possibilities. What changes is not the work itself, but our position before it. Looking ceases to be a passive act and becomes an active practice, an exercise in relation.

As Andrea Soto Calderón suggests, images do not merely reflect the world: they make it appear. From this perspective, the fair may be understood as a micro-cartography of ways of seeing, a space in which each work proposes a singular form of perceptual experience. The visible is not a stable datum or a neutral surface, but a process in constant elaboration, renewed in the encounter between artwork and viewer.

Constructions of the Visible does not propose a closed classification, but an invitation: to pause, to question appearances, and at the same time to allow oneself to be affected by the creative power of forms. In the movement between figuration and abstraction, we discover that every image is an operation—a way of ordering experience. The walkthrough invites us to assume this perceptual responsibility and to recognize that reality is not simply there: it is constructed in every act of creation.

SELECTION OF GALLERIES AND ARTISTS:

Ana Cardoso — Galeria São Mamede. Antonio Barahona — Galería María Aguilar. Leticia Feduchi — Galería Sigüenza. Joost Vandebrug — Kant Gallery. Beatriz Castela —Galería Beatriz Pereira. Fernando Mikelarena— Kur Art Gallery. Camil Giralt — Pigment Gallery. Virginia Rivas — Galería Beatriz Pereira. Miguel Piñeiro — Moret Art. Maria Svarbova — Galería BAT alberto cornejo.

ABOUT ZURIÑE LAFÓN

Zuriñe Lafón. Courtesy of the curator.

Zuriñe Lafón (1987) holds a PhD in Audiovisual Communication from the University of Navarra with the dissertation Francisco Calvo Serraller, Art Critic. Since 2015 she has devoted herself to research and teaching in Visual Culture, delivering courses such as Visual Culture, Photojournalism, Editorial Design, Foundational Texts on Photography, Digital Media Editing, and Fashion and Artistic Movements. She has taught at the University of Navarra, Universitat Internacional de Catalunya, UNIR, and the University of Montevideo. She has also worked in cultural departments of institutions such as El Correo Bilbao and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid.

Through her project Atelier de imágenes, she shares research and outreach on contemporary images, creating a space dedicated to reflecting on painting, photography, and cinema. She is currently writing the book Uninhabiting the Frame, a research project on the ontology of photography through selected photographic archives of women in Spain.

“THE PREDOMINANCE OF BRILLIANT AESTHETICS”. CURATED WALKTHROUGH BY MARISOL SALANOVA

Framed by the theme “The Predominance of Brilliant Aesthetics”, this selection brings together works that understand brilliance not as superficiality, but rather as visual strategy, as contemporary seduction, as a symptom of an era that requires impact, color, polish, and perhaps at times certain excesses in order to think (itself).

This proposal, in which works of different formats and techniques coexist and are created by artists from various generations, opens a debate aimed at better understanding our present aesthetic condition—one in which the public is invited to participate.

Marisol Salanova approaches brilliant aesthetics as a tension rather than a closed solution. In the works of Urdiales and Celada, brilliance appears as an internal conflict within pictorial language; in Monge and Okuda, so different from one another, as a direct spectacularization of space and the urban imaginary; in Juncal, Rivas, and Alpuente, as a fragile balance between material and perception; and in Palito Dominguín, as an iconographic and symbolic affirmation, almost performative in nature. What particularly interests the curator and critic about this group is that brilliant aesthetics is not perceived as unified, but fragmented—at times ironic, at times ornamental, at times almost violent; elsewhere softened or symbolic. It is not an innocent brilliance: it seduces, imposes, distracts, and orders the gaze, much like the visual ecosystem in which we live today.

SELECTION OF ARTISTS AND GALLERIES:

Eduardo Urdiales — Inéditad Gallery. Arol — Est_ArtSpace. Perrilla — Est_ArtSpace. Ángel Celada — Galería BAT alberto cornejo. Antonio Ovejero — CLC Arte. Alejandro Monge — 3 Punts Galería. Okuda San Miguel — 3 Punts Galería. Steen Ipsen — Kant Gallery. Marina Puche — Galería Alba Cabrera. Marcos Juncal— Galería La Mercería. Gemma Alpuente — LAVIO. Palito Dominguín — DDR Art Gallery.

ABOUT MARISOL SALANOVA

Marisol Salanova. Foto de Bertha Delgado.

Marisol Salanova is an art critic, exhibition curator, and director of the platform Arteinformado. She is a regular contributor to ABC and Cadena Ser. She holds a degree in Philosophy and a Master’s degree in Artistic Production. She has taught at university level and has published essays such as Art Criticism Today (Akal, 2024).