Within the online exhibition “Intimate spaces. Personal reflections” eight artists whose works are connected by the search of the intimate space live together. The images by Xurxo Gómez-Chao, Alfonso Zubiaga, Carlos Regueira, Soledad Córdoba, Rocío Verdejo, Andy Sotiriou, Ely Sánchez and José Quintanilla capture serene and solitary settings, empty spaces, open-plan rooms with which they invite personal reflection. The selection of images in this exhibition assembles around two areas: that of interior spaces and that of natural landscapes.

The individual is immersed in an everyday whirl leading him to a vital dilemma. A large part of our decisions is the fruit of the evolution of things, the imposition of standardised guidelines that surround us with routines of modernity, in the stream of the society of our time. However, the need to recover the essence of the human being is often imposed on this inertia. The return to spirituality, to inner balance, demands its place.

With the series "La Salita" the photographer Xurxo Gómez-Chao manages to give soul to walls and spaces in which the only outstanding element is an armchair. This way, he creates dreamlike environments within those interior landscapes where the absence of any other element confers a more intangible meaning.

Xurxo Gómez-Chao

Hotel Earle. Red room, 2016

Photography on paper Ilford

100 x 80cm

Xurxo Gómez-Chao

Hotel Earle. Golden room, 2016

Photography on paper Ilford

75 x 60cm

For her part, the lyrical scenarios of the series "Limbo" by Soledad Córdoba start from experienced and dreamy realities. Her images create visual poems, where silence, beauty, pain, fear or lack of communication are present and united by a fragile thread. Rocío Verdejo, likewise Soledad, introduces human figures in her compositions to unravel that tangle of feelings and emotions that gender violence implies. Her work "Crashroom" is a visual metaphor that manages to express the "not to exist inside".

Rocío Verdejo

Crashroom, 2014

Printing with pigmented inks on Hahnemühle paper on dibond

70 x 50cm

Natural environments also offer a multitude of possibilities to show those sensations even if there are no walls, no borders, no limitations. We find naked landscapes that manage to convey a deep balance like those by Andy Sotiriou, whose series "Snowscapes" captures snow-covered fields crossed by random lines of vegetation, or Alfonso Zubiaga, who interprets the relationship between the land and the sea with images of high-contrast and great serenity in his work "Binario". In this same way, José Quintanilla also uses cultivated fields in which, suddenly, an anonymous and washed-out construction emerges. His project "My house, my tree" conveys a deep nostalgia with retro aesthetic photographs and ochre-pastel tones.

Andy Sotiriou

Snowscape 29, 2014

Photography, mineral pigments on paper

60 x 60cm

Alfonso Zubiaga

Binario 1, 2017

Photography

55 x 74cm

José Quintanilla

Mi casa, mi árbol 15, 2015

Pigmented inks on Hahnemühle cotton paper mounted on cardboard museum

21 x 31cm

From a more dreamlike perspective, Carlos Regueira offers a dramatic vision of wooded landscapes. His "Paisajes pervertidos" reflect a morbid beauty, perhaps threatening, but at the same time reveals formal serenity and balance. These images emerge from the mist of memory and interpellate the viewer. In a similar line evolves the work of Ely Sánchez. In his series "Heridos" seeks to reveal that everything we see is an artifice, a translated image, credible but not real. On the other hand, in "Sueños geométricos" the artist focuses on the beauty of the lucid dream to experience what in real life is not feasible, thus releasing his most intimate identity.

Carlos Regueira

Malaysia, 2014

Photography

52 x 70cm

Ely Sánchez

Serie Heridos 1, 2014

Digital print

53 x 80cm

ART MADRID CLOSES ITS 21ST EDITION AS A KEY EVENT OF MADRID ART WEEK

The Galería de Cristal of the Palacio de Cibeles hosted the 21st edition of Art Madrid from March 4 to 8, once again consolidating its role as one of the must-see events of Madrid Art Week. Over the course of five days, the fair brought together 35 national and international galleries and more than 200 artists, turning the venue into a meeting point for gallerists, collectors, professionals, and lovers of contemporary art.

Throughout its trajectory, Art Madrid has built a distinct identity, with a constant focus on giving visibility to both emerging and established galleries and on opening contemporary art to diverse audiences. Rather than being structured around a single curatorial line, the fair embraced a plural proposal, respecting the unique DNA of each exhibitor.

Art Madrid’26 presented a Gallery Program distinguished by the diversity of artistic proposals and languages, encouraging dialogue between different generations and contemporary practices. Painting, sculpture, photography, drawing, installation, and new hybrid forms coexisted in an edition that once again confirmed the dynamism of today’s art scene

During the days of the fair, nearly 20,000 visitors explored the booths of the participating galleries and enjoyed a parallel program that expanded the experience beyond the traditional exhibition format.

The Parallel Program: An Expanded Art Fair

The Parallel Program once again took center stage in the Art Madrid experience, activating the fair space through projects that explored new forms of interaction between artworks, artists, and the public.

Among the most notable initiatives was the performance series Open Infinite: What the Body Remembers, which presented a daily performative action at the fair featuring works by Colectivo La Burra Negra, Rocío Valdivieso, Amanda Gatti, and Jimena Tercero. The pieces incorporated the body as a critical device and a space of memory, reinforcing the presence of performance within Art Madrid’s programming.

The third edition of Open Booth presented Despiece. Protocolo de mutación, by Daniel Barrio, a site-specific project that transformed the booth into a landscape constructed from urban remnants and industrial materials. The installation invited visitors to physically engage with the work, creating an immersive experience within the exhibition space.

Meanwhile, Espacio Nebrija hosted the project Estancias transitorias (NotanIA SipedagogIE), a proposal by Nebrija University that reflected on Aesthetic Intelligence in the face of the growing dominance of algorithmic logic. The installation proposed a reclamation of gesture, materiality, and the time inherent to the creative process as dimensions that cannot be reduced to automation.

Lecturas. Curated Walkthroughs also returned, with itineraries designed by Zuriñe Lafón and Marisol Salanova that offered curatorial insights for exploring the fair from specific critical perspectives and expanding the visitor experience.

Patronage, Awards, and Acquisitions

Support for contemporary creation once again stood as one of the fair’s central pillars through the second edition of the Art Madrid Patronage Program, which recognizes the work of artists and strengthens the connections between galleries, collectors, and private entities.

On this occasion, the following awards were presented:

Cervezas Alhambra Emerging Artist Award Iyán Castaño, represented by Galería Arancha Osoro

One Shot Hotels Breakthrough Artist Award Joost Vandebrug, represented by KANT Gallery

In the Acquisition Awards category, several private collections incorporated works presented at the fair into their collections.

Studiolo Collection Roger Sanguino — DDR Art Gallery

Devesa Law Kim Han Ki — Banditrazos Gallery

E2IN2 Collection Albert Bonet — Inéditad Gallery

dn2 Collection Iván Baizán — Galería Arancha Osoro

These acquisitions reflect the private sector’s commitment to the development of contemporary art and contribute to advancing the professional trajectories of emerging and mid-career artists.

Collecting and Support for the Artistic Ecosystem

The promotion of collecting once again played a prominent role in this edition thanks to the One Shot Collectors program, which offered personalized advice to both new buyers and more experienced collectors, facilitating access to the contemporary art market and fostering direct relationships between artists, galleries, buyers, and collectors.

This program, together with the Patronage Program, continues to strengthen the professional ecosystem surrounding the fair and reinforce Art Madrid’s commitment to supporting contemporary creation.

Among the most notable sales were works by Antonio Ovejero, represented by CLC ARTE; Leticia Feduchi and Ángela Mena, represented by Galería Sigüenza; Idoia Cuesta and Iyán Castaño, represented by Galería Arancha Osoro; and Yasiel Elizagaray, represented by Nuno Sacramento Arte Contemporânea. Likewise, the proposals presented by Inéditad Gallery were very well received, with notable sales of works by artists Albert Bonet and Eduardo Urdiales, as well as Carmen Mansilla, who debuted at Art Madrid'26 and achieved a sold out.

The overall balance of the edition has been particularly positive, with sales reported by all 35 participating galleries, confirming the strong interest from collectors and the dynamism of the market throughout the fair. Among the galleries that recorded notable commercial activity are La Mercería (Valencia), LAVIO (Murcia–Shanghai), 3 Punts Galería (Barcelona), Galerie One (Paris), Shiras Galería (Valencia), Galería Rodrigo Juarranz (Aranda de Duero), Galería São Mamede (Lisbon), Yiri Arts (Taiwan), and Trema Arte Contemporânea (Lisbon), among others.

A Fair made possible thanks to Its network of Partners

The success of Art Madrid’26 has been made possible thanks to the support of its official sponsors: Cervezas Alhambra, One Shot Hotels, Liquitex, Universidad Nebrija, and Posca, as well as the trust of its collaborators: Asociación 9915, Colección Studiolo, E2IN2, Colección dn2, Devesa Law, Enviarte, Cova 13, and Vanille Bakery Lab & Café. The fair also benefits from the involvement of its media partners and the support of various cultural organizations, private collections, and institutions that contribute to strengthening the contemporary art ecosystem.

Art Madrid: A Future Full of Possibilities

After 21 years of history, Art Madrid continues to consolidate its position as a key event in the contemporary art calendar, both nationally and internationally. Its ability to bring together galleries, artists, collectors, and institutions reinforces its role as a space for encounter, exchange, and discovery. The fair maintains a steadily growing outlook, driven by a program that evolves each year and increasingly opens up to more innovative proposals.

Thank you for being part of the 21st edition of Art Madrid. Your support is essential for continuing to promote art and culture.