Visualist AURORA GASULL, new portrait for "Barcelona retrats de proximitat"

I photograph Aurora at her apartment in Plaça del Pi, a cozy space with walls full of paintings and drawings that are little jewels. Among others there are works by her mother Aurora Altisent, and Carme Balmas, her grandmother. A whole family of artists.
Aurora is kind and delicate. She does not like to define herself as an artist, she prefers the term visualist, but I think that the compositions and animations she makes with the computer are true works of art.
She explains to me that she had to give up music because of a hearing problem, and that she couldn't find anything that could replace such a powerful and complete art. With the forms and movements she creates on the screen, she has managed to invent a world that, although not as universal as music, has enough entity to attract and move.

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Born in Barcelona in 1962, cellist and member of several chamber ensembles until 1990, Aurora Gasull started in the visual field with photography, drawing and painting. Attracted by the development of the digital environment, she studied a Master's degree in musical creation and sound technology (UPF) and finally specialized with a Master's degree in computer animation and image synthesis (UIB).
After a few years of active profession, he begins the exploration of the abstract image.
In 2018 she participates in the experimental film program developed by the Fundación Juan March (L’abstracció en moviment, 1921-2012 ), which accompanies the exhibition of Hans Hinterreiter at the headquarters in Palma and at the Museo de Arte Abstracto Español in Cuenca.
In 2019, she is be the protagonist of the 2nd edition of Pantalla Interior at the Hall of the CCCB (Centro de Cultura Contemporánea de Barcelona).
Cartes des del bosc is presented at the Festival de video d'auteur FLUJO at the Centro Artes Santa Mònica.
In 2021 monographic screening of films at the Convent of San Agustín and shared screening with Joma presented by the Flujo Club at the Antic Teatre.
"I believe that the visual that progresses is an extension of painting and that music can act as a teacher on the path of abstraction in time. Digital tools allow for the exploration of visual language as never before, despite the extreme frustration they represent today when compared to the experience of playing an instrument. Animation is an experience in a very slow tempo: days and weeks of dedication pass from start to finish.
In recent years I have begun to work with live tools that offer a new spontaneity, and to replace the screen as a support for projection on white ceramic, paper and stone, materials that reveal the display of the colors of light in a sensitive experience. Perhaps I will be able to hesitate and be wrong again live."

Aurora Gasull website

New portrait for "Barcelona retrats de proximitat": Eva Serrats , architect.

This is probably the most proximity portrait of the whole book, because Eva is my neighbor. While she is heating water to make some tea, she explains to me that she is very happy because she has just been informed that Seguint el peix, the project presented by Leve, her production company, together with Top manta (Sindicato Popular de Vendedores Ambulantes), has been selected to represent Catalonia and the Balearic Islands at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2023. It is a project that touches on common themes that Leve Productora often works on: migratory traffic, the privatization of public space, feminism, the anti-racist struggle or food sustainability.
Afterwards we have a nice cup of tea and she tells me how the spaces have been organized at her house, a peculiar three-level dwelling that she designed together with her husband, Francesc Pla. 

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Eva Serrats is an architect. She has worked in the fields of photography, film and architecture and cultural management among others. In 2007 she created Leve Productora located in La Floresta, from where projects are formulated and developed in a transdisciplinary way and in close collaboration with other people and technical and creative teams. This means that each project is developed as a unitary management and networking experience, dealing with the what and the how in an integrated way and exploring the borderline territories -the stitches- of what is considered architecture. 
She is director of strategies at La Capell Cooperative, where she has been president (2019 and 2021). She currently teaches projects at the ETSAB (UPC).

New portrait for "Barcelona retrats de proximitat": HELENA OLMEDO, dancer

Helena has a light and happy air that makes her float, as if her feet never touch the ground. But also, at the same time, a determined, solid personality, which reinforces her professionalism and her charm. She asked me to do the portrait outside the Institut del Teatre, because it remembers her times when she was a dance student. Now she is settled in Paris, but she is sure that one day she will return to Barcelona, We talk about dance and she explains to me that, although it seems improvised, in modern dance all the movements are meticulously planned. She comments, enthusiastic, her new stage where besides dancing she is involved in the creation of choreographies.

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Helena Olmedo began her dance training at the age of nine, at the IAE Oriol Martorell, practicing classical, contemporary, traditional and Spanish dance. Later she graduated in contemporary dance at Barcelona's Conservatori de l'Institut del Teatre. In 2015 she is selected to continue her studies at the Codarts University of the Arts in Rotterdam. During her training she choreographed the duet Careful Who You Meet and the solo Grifo, performed at Korzo Theater, Den Hague, Schowburg Theater Rotterdam and Solo CerModern festival in Turkey.
In 2018 she travels to Israel and joins Vertigo Dance Company dancing One one & one, Leela and White Noise. Back in Europe in 2020, as a freelancer, she collaborates in the creation of projects and tour with Kor'sea on the piece Igra and participates in a new project with Robinson Cassarino, starting the creation of the solo Thick Skin presented at the Deltebre festival.
At the same time she develops a modeling career. In one of the fashion projects she meets the choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and joins the tour of the piece Nomad, participates in the new creation Vlaemsch and soon in Hanjo a collaboration with the Munich Chamber Orchestra.

Art curator Elvira Diangany Ose, new portrait for "Barcelona retrats de proximitat"

I really wanted to photograph Elvira Dyangani Ose, the first woman to take over the direction of MACBA since it opened almost thirty years ago.
We shot the portraits in the storeroom where part of the museum's impressive collection, an exhaustive sample of the world's contemporary art, is kept.
Elvira, kind and extremely charming, has just arrived from Mexico and has had little sleep, but she still manages to make the session pleasant and fun until the end.

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Elvira Dyangani Ose is Director of the Museu d'Art Contemporàni de Barcelona (MACBA).
Born in Cordoba, with origins in Equatorial Guinea, she holds a degree in Art History from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. She holds a Diploma of Advanced Studies in Architecture, History and Theory of Architecture from the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, and a Master of Arts degree from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York (currently completing her doctorate).
2004 to 2006, Curator of Contemporary African Art and Culture, Centro Atlántico de Arte Moderno (CAAM), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
2006 to 2008, Curator of Contemporary Art and Publications Editor (Spanish), Centro Andaluz de Arte Contemporáneo (CAAC), Seville.
2011 to 2013, Artistic Director, Rencontres Picha. Biennale de Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.
2011 to 2014, Curator International Art, Supported by Guaranty Trust Bank Plc., Tate Modern, London.
2015, Curator of the 8th edition of Göteborg International Biennial for Contemporary Art, GIBCA, Gothenburg.
2017 to 2018, Creative Time Senior Curator, New York.
2021, Director and Head Curator, The Showroom, London.
Lecturer in Visual Cultures. Goldsmiths, University of London.
Member of the Thought Council, Fondazione Prada.

Esmeralda Berbel, writer, for "Barcelona retrats de proximitat".

I confess to Esmeralda that I have not read any of her books. To get to know her a bit more before the session, I have only been able to read and listen to interviews posted on the internet. I ask her which of her books she recommends: Lo prohibido, which I have already started, and Detrás y delante de los puentes.

I ask her, out of simple curiosity, about what she teaches in her writing courses and she answers that she teaches how to read well, to understand the narrations, and then to structure them. And the style?, I ask. Everyone has their own style, I don't get involved here. In any case, I help to develop it.

There is a nice light in her studio. Before leaving, with that special smile of hers -she also smiles with her eyes- she gives me a copy of Lo prohibido and dedicates it to me: "...on this beautiful autumn day, where your gaze and mine overlap in the light and in the words".

> Esmeralda Berbel (Badalona, 1961) studies Hispanic Philology at the University of Barcelona. Her literary work has been awarded several prizes, among them Femenino-Lumen, Montserrat Roig, Ana María Matute, Cuentos del Sur in Buenos Aires, etc. She has published books of short stories: El hombre que pagaba noches enteras, Alismas; of interviews: Trátame bien, A veces la vida, Lo que piensan l@s adolescentes, the epistolary No se lo cuentes a nadie, of poetry Habitarlo todo, Fumar en la bañera; she has been editor of several books of diaries, of the novels Detrás y delante de los puentes, Lo prohibido and of a personal diary Irse. She has written and co-directed the short film El secreto.

She has collaborated in Va de cine, Radio 5 reviewing several filmmakers.

In November she exhibits at the FX Animation film school, the collective work of several artists inspired by the novel Lo prohibido.

She teaches Literary Creation at the Ateneo Barcelonés Writing School, at La buena vida bookstore in Madrid, at Jessica Walker's theater school Laboratorio and at Laura Jou's theater studio. She teaches writing, reading and poetry courses at the FX Animation film school.

Photographer Blanca Munt for "Barcelona, retrats de proximitat"

There is a generation of young photographers that catches my attention because of their tendency to desaturate color photographs, but also because of the originality of their proposals. Blanca Munt's work is part of this group, with remarkable projects such as In Between, Rastres d'un camí, or the award-winning Alerta Mira-Sol, an interesting look at security, neighborhood relations and paranoia.

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Blanca Munt graduated in Photography and Digital Media at the Escola Superior d'Imatge i Disseny (IDEP) in Barcelona in 2020. She believes that the best way to convey her ability to create and tell stories is through the fusion of photography, video and design.
She is interested in subjects such as housing, architecture, periphery, landscape, portraiture and society. She researches on the culture of fear and paranoia, which has led her to realize the project Alerta Mira-Sol (2020), published as a photobook by Dalpine publishing house, after winning the Fiebre Photobook Dummy Award (2020) and exhibited at KBr Llama at Fundación Mapfre (2021), Getxo Photo (2021) and at Sala Canal Isabel II during the Fiebre Photobook Fest (2021). Her project Sòl i Sostre (2021) was exhibited at the 7th photography festival Mirades in Baix Empordà.
She has worked as an assistant with the photographer Tanit Plana, participating in the Púber project of the latter, exhibited at La Virreina (2020). She has also worked as a curator with photographer Borja Ballbé for the digital platform Panorama, publishing artistic projects that address issues related to landscape and territory.
She currently runs La Juani, a creative direction and production studio where she works on commercial projects and some author proposals.

Blanca Munt web site

Txema Salvans, new portrait for "BARCELONA, retrats de proximitat"

A few minutes after entering Txema's house I could already see that we speak the same language, and that it was going to be a profitable session. Txema has very clear ideas and explains them with enthusiasm, whether in conversation or, above all, with his photographs. He masterfully documents the dystopia in which we are already immersed, with a touch of humor, but also of mischief. His work is, without a doubt, a valuable document of the times we are living in.

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Txema Salvans (Barcelona, 1971) is a Catalan photographer who, for the past two decades, has developed a documentary and artistic approach outside the standard photojournalist platforms, including photoessay.
Joan Fontcuberta has described his work as a “balancing critical thinking with a poetic sense of humor”. His book project Nice To Meet You (2005) received the 2015 Photo España award for the best photobook. The Waiting Game (2014) explores the necessity of desire and prostitution along the Mediterranean coastline of Spain and was awarded as the best Iberoamerican photobook.
My Kingdom was published by MACK in 2018. Perfect Day is the latest project published by MACK.
Txema Salvans' work has been published by leading international media including Le Monde, Suddeustsche Zeitung Magazine, Stern, New York Times, Welt der Frau, NZZ, Liberation, Monocle, Colors, Big Mag, Vice, Marie Claire, GQ France, Elephen, Britsh Journal of Photography, Wallpaper, I-D Magazine, Matador and El País Semanal.
He has recently exhibited his work at Centre D'Art Contemporani Arts Santa Mònica, Museum of Contemporary Art Hamburg, Museum fur photographie Braunschweig and Museo de Arte Contemporaneo Reina Sofía.

Txema Salvans website

Alba Armengou, new portrait for "Barcelona, retrats de proximitat".

Alba is like a member of the family. She is a good friend of my son's and at home we have been fans of hers for years. She explains to me, enthusiastic, the new stage she is living: she leaves the Sant Andreu Jazz Band and starts a new project with the guitarist Vicente López, with an album included.
Alba speaks with the same delicacy with which she sings jazz standards or bossa nova and with the softness of her splendid trumpet solos. I ask her how she feels more comfortable, whether singing or playing the trumpet and she answers that, although they are different things, both allow her to express herself musically. Maybe singing -she tells me- I reach more people. The trumpet is more exclusive...

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"I was born on July 7, 2001. At the age of three I started studying music theory at the Conservatori del Liceu, and later, at the age of six, I began studying trumpet. In 2009 I entered the Institut Escola Artístic Oriol Martorell and joined the Sant Andreu Jazz Band, directed by Joan Chamorro, where shortly after I started singing. From the age of fourteen to sixteen I was part of the JONC (National Youth Orchestra of Catalonia). In 2018 I presented my first album as a co-leader with Joan Chamorro. A year later I began higher studies in jazz trumpet at ESMUC (Catalonia High School of Music).
In 2020, after the COVID confinement, I started a musical project with the guitarist Vicente López, which will result in what will be my first album under my name with my own compositions.
In recent years I have also been part of projects such as the Valparaiso Clasijazz Big band directed by Miho Hazama, the Barcelona Art Orquestra directed by Lluís Vidal and the Orquestra de Músiques d'Arrel de Catalunya directed by Dani López. Also throughout my career I have participated in more than 40 recordings where I have been able to collaborate with musicians such as Joel Fram, Jessie Davis, Scott Robinson, Joe Magnarelli, Perico Sambeat, Scott Hamilton, Dick Oatts, among many others.."

New site for the "BARCELONA retrats de proximitat" projecT

With the 80 portraits project almost finished, and starting to work on the book layout, I created a website to preview the work.

You can check it here.

Portrait session with our Canadian nephews and nieces

It's already becoming a tradition: when we have visitors at home, we end up doing a long and fun portrait session.