A Catalan Weekend in London – Aftermath

It's been already a week since the Catalan weekend happened at Rich Mix. There was some delicious food and drinks that livened up the opening party and in turn made me feel homesick. But also, some interesting screenings like cinematographer Xavi Amoros's music video for Fyfe Dangerfield.

I very much enjoyed Mireia Ros's documentary 'Barcelona, abans que el temps ho esborri', about the golden age of Catalan bourgeoisie through the rise and fall of the Baladia family, the first to introduce the locomotive in Spain in mid XIX century. It helped me understand the past and in some ways the present of Barcelona and the Costa Brava, the coastal region of the North East of Catalonia.

Photos by Sin Fin Cinema. Artwork by Pau Ros and Lidia Casas.

A CATALAN WEEKEND IN LONDON

Here's the flyer of A CATALAN WEEKEND IN LONDON, the first instalment of a series of events exploring Spanish cultural identity and linguistic diversity curated by Sin Fin Cinema.

I am lucky to have been selected to represent Catalan new tendencies this weekend at Rich Mix. I will be exhibiting some of my architecture illustration and animation work together with established artists in the fields of photography, video and music, among others.

Catalonia is an autonomous region in the north-east of the Iberian Peninsula, roughly outlined by the Pyrenees, the Mediterranean Sea, and the regions of Aragon and Valencia which formerly were part of the Kingdom of Aragon. Its capital is Barcelona, the second largest city in Spain after Madrid and my hometown.

But that's in a very tiny nutshell. Come down to Rich Mix on the 1st and 2nd of June if you want to get a glimpse of the past, present and future of Catalonia. There's so much to know!

Check out the programme here.

Walk #2

Considering we have chained a few days of hot summery weather I would like to resume the conversation about walks.

This is my second documented walk in London. It happened about a year ago at a time of self doubt and thoughts about the past. Starting at Highbury & Islington station with the idea of exploring Holloway road and fuelled by nostalgia I sought for places I had been to on my first visit around that area in autumn 2008.

Wandering about the Emirates Stadium I discovered Gillespie park, a very special little park which is also a nature reserve, right next to the train tracks. It stretches out from Arsenal station to Finsbury park and is divided in different areas including an Ecology centre, a little pond and a wind turbine.

The journey included some amateur train spotting at Drayton Park station, walking under a pedestrian only railway arch, and crossing the always comforting Highbury Fields finally ending up where it started.

The Circle's on Fire!

Last entry about the Barbican inspired works. This time it's the Circle, and he's hot! Yeah, because he's eaten a very spicy chilli and needs to drink water from the Thames to cool himself down. People at the Southbank must be freaking out to see such a massive creature looming over right across Waterloo bridge. Let's hope he won't have a nap anywhere near!

This set of works are done by combining photos and digital drawing.

Birds in the Attic

After chaos and destruction there comes the calm and where once was an aggressive building now there is good Shakespeare tower, happy and relaxed while singing to birds nested in the attic. To have birds in one's head is a Spanish saying referring to someone being dreamy, immature or mad. 

This is the second instalment of building creatures inspired by The Barbican Estate and plays around with the idea of an environmentally friendly architecture. Quite literally.