Art Madrid'25 – New objectivity: from nature to industry

 

 

 

© Albert Renger-Patzsch

 

 

Renger-Patzsch (1897-1966) approaches to photography by his father´s influence, an amateur photographer. He studied Humanities and, after his military service (where he collaborated as a scientific assistant), he started Physics at the University of Dresde. However, he gave up his studies to dedicate entirely to photography. He also felt attracted to writing (he wrote more than thirty photography books). Foremost among these is “Die Welt ist schön” (The world is beautiful), 1928, that is a classic of modern photography. 

 

 

© Albert Renger-Patzsch

 

 

The exhibition is organised in several sections that presents an overview of his artistic career, which combine his personal projects with commercial practices. Renger-Patzsch was a relevant figure of the German New Objectivity, an artistic movement that emerged after the end of World War I as a reaction against the Expressionism that preceded it. This current strove to represent the world in the most objective way possible in a period in which Europe was going through numerous changes. He considered photography as a technical invention that belonged to the field of science.

 

 

© Albert Renger-Patzsch

 

 

In a first period, he worked for a publisher by making photographies of plants and flowers in a very severe and technical way. Neutral, dark or blurred backgrounds allowed focusing on details. He developed a careful and thoughtful method which lets him represent an objective and faithful reality. His first photographs are compilated in the book “Die Welt ist schön”, formed by 100 images that show nature and human developments: plants, landscapes, objects, architecture, city, industry, etc. These artworks enhance the importance of the industry and seriality, highlighting the perspective and the contrast of lights and shadows.

 

 

© Albert Renger-Patzsch

 

 

It can be seen how the artist keep on eye on the modern city. This is consider the place where the new and the old violently coexist. Using geometry he propose complicated frames. Lately, he focused on the peaceful feeling that nature brings; he used to walk a long time to find out the best conditions to take his pictures. Then, he paid attention to organic shapes in nature, such as the different textures that contrast with industry pulid surfaces.

 

 

© Albert Renger-Patzsch

 

 

Renger-Patszch proposes a view that focuses on the new era. His photographs can be visited during summer months until the 10th of September in Mapfre Foundation Recoletos Hall, where can also be enjoyed an exhibition about portrait in the 20th century, in which different artists from all around the world and historical moments approach to the human figure in a variety of ways.

 

 

© Albert Renger-Patzsch

 

 

From July 7 to 9, 2025, the Balsera Palace will host the First Course on Collecting and Contemporary Art, an intensive 15-hour program that will explore the complex and fundamental question of taste in contemporary art. Organized by the Nebrija Institute of Arts and Humanities at Nebrija University and the Avilés City Council, in collaboration with 9915 — Association of Private Collectors of Contemporary Art and the Institute of Contemporary Art, the course offers a unique opportunity for analysis and debate on the dynamics that shape aesthetic and symbolic value in today’s art scene.


First Course on Collecting and Contemporary Art. Avilés, Asturias


The notion of taste, intrinsically tied to aesthetic judgments and power relations, has played a decisive role in the historical prominence of artists and artworks. However, contemporary art—marked by its breaking of conventions, diversity of media and techniques, and critical stance toward traditional canons—raises fundamental questions about the continued relevance of this concept.

This course will explore how the decisions made by key players in the art system—institutions, private collections, galleries, curators, and artists—continually redefine a field of taste shaped by aesthetic, symbolic, cultural, social, and political logics.


"¿But does it exist, and what is the prevailing taste of our time—so seemingly confused, fragmented, indecipherable?" - Omar Calabrese, The Neo-Baroque Era.


The academic program, directed by José Luis Guijarro Alonso, Director of the Master’s in Art Market and Related Business Management at Nebrija University, and Pablo Álvarez de Toledo, Head of the Department of Arts at Nebrija University and the Nebrija Institute of Arts and Humanities, will bring together a distinguished group of national experts—including collectors, critics, curators, gallery owners, and artists—whose contributions will address key issues in shaping aesthetic, symbolic, and market value in today’s art world.


PROGRAM

MONDAY, JULY 7

9:30 AM Registration.

10:00 AM Course Opening Nebrija University Avilés City Council Presented by Rosario López Meras – President of the Association of Contemporary Art Collectors, 9915, and Adrián Piera – President of the ICA, Institute of Contemporary Art.

10:30 AM Course Presentation By José Luis Guijarro Alonso – Art Historian and Anthropologist, Researcher, and Director of the Master’s in Art Market and Related Business Management at Nebrija University.

11:00 AM Coffee Break.

11:30 AM Panel Discussion The Taste of Private Collecting as a Prelude to History. Speakers: Candela Álvarez Soldevilla – Entrepreneur and Collector; Javier Quilis – INELCOM Collection; José Miguel Vegas Valle – Collector. Moderator: Luis Feás – Critic and Curator.

1:00 PM Lunch Break.

3:30 PM Individual Lecture On Good Taste in Contemporary Art. Speaker: Marisol Salanova – Curator and Art Critic, Director of Arteinformado.

4:45 PM Panel Discussion The Influence of Galleries in Shaping Contemporary Taste. Speakers: Elba Benítez – Gallerist; Ricardo Pernas – Gallerist (Arniches 26); Aurora Vigil-Escalera – Gallerist. Moderator: Rafael Martín – Coleccion@casamer.

6:00 PM End of Day.

6:30 PM Activity and Cocktail Visit to the Exhibition Asturian Artists in the Pérez Simón Collection – Avilés.

TUESDAY, JULY 8

10:00 AM Individual Lecture Contemporary (Bad) Taste: Kitsch, Camp, and Tacky. Speaker: Julio Pérez Manzanares – Autonomous University of Madrid.

11:00 AM Coffee Break.

11:30 AM Panel Discussion Institutions and the Formation of Contemporary Taste. Speakers: Virginia López – Artist, Founder of PACA_Proyectos Artísticos Casa Antonino; Julieta de Haro – Artistic Director of CentroCentro; Carlos Urroz – Director of Institutional Relations, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía. Moderator: Laura Gutiérrez – Director, School of Art of Oviedo.

1:00 PM Lunch Break.

3:30 PM Panel Discussion Beyond the Eye: The Taste for Ethical, Ecological, Social, or Political Concerns in Contemporary Art. Speakers: Semíramis González – Independent Curator; Eugenio Ampudia – Artist; Claudia Rodríguez-Ponga – Independent Curator. Moderator: Bárbara Mur Borrás – PhD in Fine Arts.

5:00 PM End of Day.

5:30 PM Activity Visit to the Studiolo Exhibition – Candela Álvarez Soldevilla Collection.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 9

9:30 AM Meeting with Asturian Artists Speakers: María Castellanos – Artist; Avelino Sala – Artist; Consuelo Vallina – Artist. Moderator: Pablo Álvarez de Toledo – Nebrija University.

11:00 AM Activity Visit to the Niemeyer Center – Avilés.

Course Closing Ceremony.





This course is designed for art professionals, collectors, researchers, and students seeking an in-depth analysis of the dynamics that shape taste and collecting practices in contemporary art. Adopting a critical and multidisciplinary perspective, it provides a unique opportunity to rigorously examine the aesthetic, symbolic, and structural factors that underpin the legitimization of contemporary art.