The One Project Program, curated for the fifth consecutive year by Carlos Delgado Mayordomo, has become a true showcase for new talent. These are the 8 projects of the 13th edition of the fair.

Alejandro Monge

The European Dream 2, 2017

Polychrome galvanized steel

42 x 52cm

Alejandro Monge

Mickey L. Mouse (Age from 2 to 99), 2015

Polyurethane resin

19 x 10cm

Alejandro Monge, Candela Muniozguren, Antonyo Marest, Carlos Nicanor, Bernardo Medina, Jugo Kurihara, Aina Albo Puigserver and Vânia Medeiros are the 8 artists selected by the independent curator Carlos Delgado Mayordomo to form the One Project Program at Art Madrid'18, a program designed on young and mid-career artists with specific projects developed for their exhibition at the fair.

In One Project, 8 artists design a specific proposal for an individual stand, these 8 projects, with a resounding and coherent entity, they dialogue guided by the hand of the curator. The objective is to captivate the public, allowing them a break within the commercial context of the art fair. "One Project has served to establish a dynamic, open and polivocal relationship with those visitors interested in establishing a more deliberate and reflective view within such an overwhelming and oversaturated context of information as it is a contemporary art fair", explains Carlos Delgado Mayordomo.

Candela Muniozguren

Pink Up 01, 2016

Lacquered steel

55 x 28cm

Candela Muniozguren

Shenbazuru 01, 2017

Brass

42 x 52cm

In the edition of Art Madrid'18, One Project is made up of the following projects:

Alejandro Monge (Zaragoza, 1988) with 3 Punts Galeria (Barcelona). Endowed with a solid plastic formation and interested in the complex channels of figuration in the current creation, the recent research of Alejandro Monge seeks to investigate the economic contradictions of our present. Conformed as a series and grouped under the title "European Dream", its latest proposal is organized around the conceptualization of money as an index that modulates our understanding of the world in a context mediated by the financial crisis of 2008.

Candela Muniozguren (Madrid, 1986) with Bea Villamarín (Gijón). The sculptural work of this artist poses an intimate communication between her creative developments, where minimalist forms dominate, and the multiplicity of chromatic effects.

Antonyo Marest

Hugonnard, 2018

Spray enamel on wood

60 x 60cm

Antonyo Marest

Euclid, 2018

Spray enamel on wood

60 x 60cm

Antonyo Marest (Alicante, 1987) with Diwap Gallery (Seville). The jumps of scale, the exit of the interior of a museum to the clarity of the streets, the urban style shared with the public in the form of painting, sculpture and photography. Marest has geometry as a symbol of personal growth and positivism about architecture, line, plane and color. From Seville, DIWAP Gallery works immersed in the most current contemporary art, with the aim of approaching a demanding public and always in constant search for new contributions to the local and national art scene. With a special inclination towards young and urban art, DIWAP Gallery has been defined by the representation of its artists and their works. In short, DIWAP invests in the investigation of new lines of contemporary works and new forms of curatorial projects, preferably linked to mural art and installation.

Carlos Nicanor

Marina mimética, 2017

Bronze

67 x 35cm

Carlos Nicanor (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 1974) with Artizar gallery (La Laguna, Tenerife). Brossanian sculptor, his creativity aspires to create works that are at the same time caustic alteration of the object and its meaning. The sculptural intensity of Nicanor is poetic in nature.

In 1989, in the center of the city of San Cristóbal de La Laguna, on the island of Tenerife, the Artizar art gallery began its journey, with the main objective of making known and establishing a meeting point for art in the Canary Islands. A wide range of artists from the islands has passed through its walls, from paintings of the XVIII, XIX and XX centuries, contemporary painters of recognized national and international prestige and, of course, young artists who have grown up with the gallery.

Bernardo Medina

Isla de Todos, 2017

Fiberglass

182 x 76cm

Bernardo Medina (San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1965) with Nuno Sacramento (Ílhavo, Portugal). Distinguished by his ability to integrate objects found in his travels, to create beautiful and strong abstract pieces, the artistic development of Bernardo Medina has been the result of a long process of study and experimentation from the everyday to be projected in paintings and sculptures with a strong visual poetics

The Nuno Sacramento Gallery has been active since 2003 with the opening of its first gallery in the city of Aveiro, Portugal. In 2009 he moved to the nearby city of Ilhavo, to a space specially designed for a gallery of contemporary art, where it remains until now. It annually develops around six solo and three collective exhibitions, in the disciplines of painting, sculpture, photography, installation and video.

Jugo Kurihara

Sin título 3, 2017

Japanese ink on glossy paper

24 x 18cm

Jugo Kurihara (Japan, 1977) with Pantocrator Gallery (Suzhou, China). In his works, he combines Asian and European artistic languages and successfully converts it into his own expression: images of a disturbing beauty, capable of referring unpublished worlds, of tracing complex writings and, above all, of mobilizing the spectator in front of a flowing painting that always seem to be about to stabilize in a specific iconography.

Pantocrator Gallery is a project for the dissemination and production of contemporary art by emerging international artists in any of its disciplines. Pantocrator Gallery, as a nomadic project that is, has its physical headquarters in the Chinese city of Suzhou, but it has visited cities such as Barcelona, ​​Berlin or Shanghai in which they continue to work eventually. Pantocrator Gallery works as a cultural bridge between Asia and the West.

Aina Albo Puigserver

Dubte, 2016

Wood, plywood and lacquer

109 x 109cm

Aina Albo Puigserver

Desolació, 2016

Mixed media

53 x 39cm

Aina Albo Puigserver (Palma de Mallorca, 1982) with Pep Llabrés Art Contemporani (Palma de Mallorca). Experiences that go beyond the senses, Aina Albo investigates and approaches her emotions and sensations to understand them better, giving them shape and color in an attempt to turn the abstract into concrete.

Pep Llabrés, after a long journey in the sector, opened his own space in April 2015, and since then focuses his activity in the field of contemporary art, giving visibility to young values with new languages of expression, without forgetting the contribution to the art world of artists with more experience, both national and international.

Vânia Medeiros (Salvador de Bahía, Brazil, 1984) with the RV Cultura e Arte gallery (Salvador de Bahía, Brazil). Visual artist and editor whose work deals with human and emotional maps and creates subjective cartographies and ways of graphically expressing the experiences of a traveling body in the city.

Vânia Medeiros

Intuição, 2016

Pigments on paper

42 x 60cm

Vânia Medeiros

Intuição, 2016

Pigments on paper

42 x 60cm

RV Cultura e Arte is a contemporary art gallery based in Salvador de Bahia focused on works on paper (drawing, painting, collage and printing processes) and emerging Brazilian artists. Inaugurated in 2008 by Larissa Martina and Ilan Iglesias, RV Cultura e Arte carries out a diverse annual program offering at least four exhibitions as well as workshops, talks, guided visits and viewings that foster a closer relationship with the local community, collectors and curators . Since 2011, RV Cultura e Arte has also developed an editorial project with artist books and graphic novels.

A mixed and international selection, different perspectives and starting points that find, in One Project, common frequencies in which to dialogue and share a handful of concepts. However, as Delgado Mayordomo explains, "these lines work only as a tool box to think about the work of artists without denying the relevance of other constructions".

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.