pepadmetlla62@gmail.com | M. 636 931 955

The poetics of space

Carles Puigdemont

It gives me great pleasure to introduce this presentation of the catalogue for a retrospective of work by an artist as significant as Pep Admetlla. The Poetics of Space, title of the show to be held at the Fundació Vila Casas Can Mario Museum of Contemporary Sculpture, will be a magnificent opportunity to enjoy his work spanning several creative periods from 1988 to late 2016.

I know the artist personally, from when he collaborated with cultural initiatives associated with the Girona city council while I was Mayor, and I have had the privilege of visiting his studio in Santa Eugènia de Ter, which occasioned newspapers to look for puns combining Eugènia and genius, which in itself gives an idea of Admetlla’s talent and creativity.

Art never ceases to surprise or impress us. It is always open to new view points and produces feelings that move us. This helps to make the figure of the artist seem somewhat distant, and Admetlla is not immune to this enigma. In some of his creations he combines stateof- the-art 3D modelling technology with the artisanal hand-crafting of wood and other materials. He, who seeks a quiet and slow-moving environment for artistic creation, is also a dynamic and tireless cultural activist, rethinking urban planning and possibilities for architecture. In short, he is forever displaying facets which, seemingly contradictory, end up configuring a whole, like the cosmological principle of yin and yang.

Similarly, I would also like to underline the uniqueness of his output, which juxtaposes architecture, sculpture, painting, anatomy and literature. This, one might say, authorial stamp is also related to another constant in his artistic output; that of research, prior experimentation, reflection and analysis. His is a broad and powerful output, as rich in interdisciplinarity as his training and vast CV which – and this is by no means an exhaustive list – covers sculpture, industrial design, architecture and history of art, as well as neuropsychopedagogy. It is the profile of a humanist, a Renaissance man who, on the fringes of limited academic orthodoxy, goes in search of the training required by his art which, in line with contemporary creation, knows no frontiers between disciplines.

It is within this conceptual framework, connected also with ephemeral architecture, that his transitable sculptures take on meaning. They are atemporal works that become spaces for interaction where that which the artist terms dissections come into play, these being memory, intuition, sensibility, and experience.

The work of Admetlla pulses with influences which have accompanied him throughout his life, those of Paul Valéry and Italo Calvino, as well as from people closer to home – Glòria Bosch, Quim Español, and Torres Monsó. I will finish by mentioning this last one and the impact the audiovisual Versus had on me. Pep Admetlla and his good friend Torres Monsó reenacted the legendary boxing match at the Barcelona Monumental bullring between the Swiss poet and pugilist Arthur Cravan and the world heavyweight champion Jack Johnson. The deeper significance of the project is to be read in the sense that art examines us in a combat against ourselves, as an unavoidable confrontation between reality and the role one plays. The death of Torres Monsó on 30 January 2015, just as I know he did in life, has influenced much of Admetlla’s latest work. So there it is; my eulogy to two artists from Santa Eugènia. And I wish the exhibition The Poetics of Space every success with its internationally known pieces which at the moment are appearing in the Venice Architecture Biennale.

Carles Puigdemont i Casamajó
President of the Government of Catalonia

Barcelona, October 2016

Les pintures fosques de Pep Admetlla

Joaquim Español

Hi ha imatges que, una vegada han tocat la retina, sembla que es desdoblin per seguir dos circuits relativament autònoms dins el laberint del cervell. Un d’ells encén les neurones sensibles a la bellesa de les figures, la coherència dels traços, l’equilibri precari de les masses, les relacions i els contrastos, la sorpresa d’algunes taques […]

Les pintures fosques de Pep Admetlla

Desde una libreta de proyectos…

Glòria Bosch

Y resulta que el extremo de la especulación da, a veces, argumentos a la práctica… Paul Valéry. Eupalinos La primera vez que supe de su obra era un núcleo potencial dentro de una libreta negra de tapa dura. Venía a verme porque se lo había aconsejado su amigo y gran artista Torres Monsó, pero en […]

Desde una libreta de proyectos…

Utopies possibles

Pilar Parcerisas

El filòsof Gaston Bachelard deia que l’home és un ésser de desig i no de necessitat, i que la utopia correspon al seu destí natural. Thomas More publicà Utopia el 1516 i introduí aquest neologisme grecollatí que tant agradà als surrealistes i particularment a André Breton per la seva vinculació al somni i al desig. […]

Utopies possibles

From a notebook full of projects…

Glòria Bosch

And it turns out the far reaches of speculation provide, at times, arguments for practice… Paul Valéry. Eupalinos, or the Architect The first time I came into contact with Admetlla’s work it was as a latent kernel in a black, hard-cover notebook. He had come to see me on the recommendation of his friend, the […]

From a notebook full of projects…

Des d’una llibreta de projectes…

Glòria Bosch

I s’esdevé que l’extrem de l’especulació dóna, de vegades, arguments a la pràctica… Paul Valéry. Eupalinos La primera vegada que vaig saber de la seva obra era un nucli potencial dins d’una llibreta negra de tapa dura. Venia a veure’m perquè li ho havia aconsellat el seu amic i gran artista Torres Monsó, però en […]

Des d’una llibreta de projectes…

Las oscuras pinturas de Pep Admetlla

Joaquim Español

Hay imágenes que, una vez han tocado la retina, parece que se desdoblen para seguir dos circuitos relativamente autónomos dentro del laberinto del cerebro. Uno de ellos enciende las neuronas sensibles a la belleza de las figuras, la coherencia de los trazos, el precario equilibrio de las masas, las relaciones y los contrastes, la sorpresa […]

Las oscuras pinturas de Pep Admetlla

La poética del espacio

Carles Puigdemont

Es un inmenso placer saludar la presentación de este catálogo de la exposición retrospectiva de la obra de un artista de referencia como es Pep Admetlla. “La poética del espacio”, título de la muestra que tiene lugar en Can Mario Museo de Escultura Contemporánea de la Fundació Vila Casas en Palafrugell, será una oportunidad magnífica […]

La poética del espacio

Possible utopias

Pilar Parcerisas

The philosopher Gaston Bachelard said that man is a creation of desire, not a creation of need, and that utopia is his natural destiny. Thomas More published Utopia in 1516, and thus coined the Greek-derived neologism so beloved by Surrealists, particularly André Breton, due to its connections with dreams and desires. There are two subjects […]

Possible utopias

The poetics of space

Carles Puigdemont

It gives me great pleasure to introduce this presentation of the catalogue for a retrospective of work by an artist as significant as Pep Admetlla. The Poetics of Space, title of the show to be held at the Fundació Vila Casas Can Mario Museum of Contemporary Sculpture, will be a magnificent opportunity to enjoy his […]

The poetics of space

Una muy breve introducción al método de Pep Admetlla

Àlex Susanna

Primera ojeada —furtiva— a su estudio: libros y maquetas. Palabras y procesos, pautas y búsqueda, modelos y especulaciones, literatura y proyectos. Todo mezclado como formando casi una unidad al principio inseparable. Segunda ojeada que deviene poco a poco un primer esbozo de mirada: una biblioteca compacta, selecta e interdisciplinaria como telón de fondo, y un […]

Una muy breve introducción al método de Pep Admetlla

La poètica de l’espai

Carles Puigdemont

Em plau d’allò més saludar la presentació d’aquest catàleg de l’exposició retrospectiva de l’obra d’un artista de referència com és Pep Admetlla. “La poètica de l’espai”, títol de la mostra que té lloc a Can Mario Museu d’Escultura Contemporània de la Fundació Vila Casas a Palafrugell, serà una oportunitat magnífica per gaudir de la seva […]

La poètica de l’espai

Utopías posibles

Pilar Parcerisas

El filósofo Gaston Bachelard decía que el hombre es un ser de deseo y no de necesidad, y que la utopía corresponde a su destino natural. Thomas More publicó Utopía en 1516 e introdujo este neologismo grecolatino que tanto gustó a los surrealistas y particularmente a André Breton por su vinculación al sueño y al […]

Utopías posibles

A very short introduction to the methods of Pep Admetlla

Àlex Susanna

A first, snatched look at his studio: books and maquettes; words and processes, guides and searches, models and speculations, literature and projects. All mixed together as if forming a seemingly indivisible unit. A second look gradually becoming a first quick sketch: a compact selection of books, select and interdisciplinary forming a backdrop, and various maquettes […]

A very short introduction to the methods of Pep Admetlla

Pep Admetlla’s Dark Paintings

Joaquim Español

There exist images which, the moment they hit the retina, seem to split in two and follow two relatively separate pathways through the labyrinth of the brain. One of them activates neurones sensitive to the beauty of shapes, the coherence of strokes, the unstable balance of masses, relations and contrasts, the surprise of some areas […]

Pep Admetlla’s Dark Paintings

Una molt bona introducció al mètode de Pep Admetlla

Àlex Susanna

Primer cop d’ull —furtiu— al seu estudi: llibres i maquetes. Paraules i processos, pautes i recerca, models i especulacions, literatura i projectes. Tot barrejat com formant gairebé una unitat de primer indestriable. Segon cop d’ull que esdevé de mica en mica un primer esborrany de mirada: una biblioteca compacta, selecta i interdisciplinària com a teló […]

Una molt bona introducció al mètode de Pep Admetlla
pepadmetlla62@gmail.com | M. 636 931 955

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