from April 4th to May 10th
HOSE VANEGAS
Born in Bogotá, Colombia, in 1954, Hose Vanegas currently lives and works in Barcelona. His academic training includes studies in Fine Arts with a specialization in sculpture at the National University of Bogota during the years 1975-1982. Subsequently, Vanegas broadened his artistic horizons with postgraduate studies at the Kanazawa University of Art, Japan, between 1983 and 1985, and with studies in printmaking at the Escuela Lonja in Barcelona, Spain, from 1988 to 1993.
In 1979, he made a permanent installation at the Faculty of Architecture of the National University of Bogota with Alberto Diaz. In addition, he has been awarded in several exhibitions and salons both in Colombia and abroad, including recognition in Japan.
Throughout his career, Hose Vanegas has explored geometry, color and symmetry in his work, creating a unique visual language that transcends cultural boundaries. As he says: "Circle - triangle - square. In addition to figures that are intrinsically geometric and imbued with meanings and connotations, they are for me, precision tools that motivate and nourish my imaginary."
While Vanegas' early works focused on the figurative, almost hyper-realistic representation of nature, over time he evolved towards human forms and abstract art. "I was born a sculptor," the artist declares, emphasizing his fascination with volume and the ability of sculptures to transform before the viewer's gaze.
Although sculpture continues to be his passion, Vanegas has turned to graphic art because of its accessibility and practicality. The integration of color in his work was an evolutionary process, inspired by his trip to Japan, where he discovered the symbolism of red, influenced by the observation of solidified lava.
Symmetry and balance are fundamental elements in Vanegas' creations, he considers them as his "road book" in the creative process. Each work is the result of capturing everyday elements that are transformed into lines, shapes and colors.
YUKO YAMADA
Yuko Yamada's artistic career is marked by a deep exploration of printmaking techniques, especially woodcut, which has allowed her to express her fascination with nature and the organic world in her works.
Yuko Yamada began her training at the Department of Painting, Specialty of Printmaking at the Faculty of Fine Arts, JYOSHIBI University, obtaining her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1998. Subsequently, she furthered her studies in printmaking at the Escuela Superior de Diseño y Arte Lonja in Barcelona and completed a monographic study of Lithography and Col-lagraphy at the Fundación Pilar y Joan Miró in Palma.
Her skill and dedication have been recognized with several awards, including the II ATLANTE Printmaking Award in 2010 and the III Atlante International Award in 2011, awarded by the Museum of Printmaking to the Digital Printmaking Arts, highlighting her mastery in printmaking, engraving, lithography, woodcut, col-lagraphy and bookbinding.
In her works, Yuko Yamada fuses iconographic and decorative elements typical of her Japanese culture with artisanal techniques such as counter-fiber woodcut. This technique, used by avant-garde artists, allows her to create unique images where the cultural crossbreeding between the European past and Japanese art can be perceived.
Her works reflect her deep connection with nature, inspired by the shape, texture and color of trees, plants and flowers. For Yuko, trees represent uniqueness and natural beauty. The woodcut technique uses wood as a matrix, a fact that allows her to bond with the material of the technique as well as its symbolism.
In the artist's words: "I like nature, trees, plants, flowers, organic things.... Trees have a shape, texture, color... they are unique and are never repeated, they are never the same. I like woodcut because the matrix is wood. In 'Composition' I use two types of wood, I play with various forms of wood. I will continue to work many possibilities in the world of woodcut."
Yuko Yamada's work invites the viewer into a visual universe where nature and technique intertwine to create images full of beauty and meaning.
