For its next edition of 2019, Art Madrid bets on the creative talent of Madrid-born artist Rubén Martín de Lucas, who will present an exclusive issue of his "Repúblicas mínimas" and will have a very active participation in the fair.

With the choice of the guest artist, Art Madrid wants to support authors in an initial or intermediate career that stand out for their committed character, their constant search for new expressive languages, the continuity in their artistic practice and the development of transnational projects that explore new discourses in contemporary art. It is a firm commitment to the creative talent that the fair will translate in a greater presence of the artist, by calling to participatory actions that involve the public with the processes of artistic production.

Rubén Martín de Lucas, "Repúblicas mínimas", nº 5

Since the beginning of his solo career, Rubén Martín de Lucas has developed a work focused on the relationship of the individual with the environment and his intervention on the territory. The discursive load of the work of this multidisciplinary artist adopts numerous forms and proposals, from painting to photography, although in recent times his projects tend to video creation. With an expressive language that starts from the exploration of the landscape and the analysis of the footprint of humankind in nature, Rubén proposes a critical approach to certain concepts that result in artificial delimitations, barriers and separations which the landscape does not understand. As he explains: "I speak of borders, of the strange concept of property of the land, of overpopulation, of industrial agriculture, of the anthropisation of the landscape. Understanding my work takes time and a small effort on the part of the viewer." To these ideas responds his most ambitious project "Stupid borders", of which "Repúblicas mínimas" is one of his lines of work: a process of creation permanently open that will have in Art Madrid a new unpublished piece.

Rubén Martín de Lucas, "Repúblicas mínimas", nº 11

From Art Madrid we want to value the constant evolution, the expressive search and the discursive commitment of Rubén's work. He is an indefatigable artist who does not understand obstacles, and risks in his works with innovative proposals. In addition, he has a mature and transcendent artistic discourse, resulting in a coherent and very promising career.

Rubén Martín de Lucas graduated in Civil Engineering in 2002, but before finishing his studies he began to excel in his artistic side by co-founding the Boa Mistura group, a collective that stands out mainly for its urban art interventions in Brazil, South Africa, Germany, Mexico or Norway. In 2015 he decided to start his solo career with a discourse focused on the reflection on the intervention of mankind in the environment; a thematic line from which several projects have already emerged and which have allowed Rubén to participate in numerous exhibitions inside and outside Spain.

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.