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Franklin Bowles Galleries

September 8 - October 1, 2011

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765/799 Beach Street San Francisco, CA 94109
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Show of New Works Eduardo Arranz-Bravo and his painting entitled "Pigmalio"
Franklin Bowles Galleries announces the opening of a new collection of works by Eduardo Arranz-Bravo. The joint exhibition features works on canvas and paper along with a series of unusual sculptures and drawings. Within the Spanish context, Eduardo Arranz-Bravo is amongst the most representative artists of his generation. His work breaks with the dramatic, transcendent painting of postwar Spain (represented by Tàpies and the informalist generation) and instead reflects a passion for color, a return to the figurative and a multidisciplinary approach to the arts. His work represents a rebellious, festive generation during the final years of the Franco dictatorship and the early years of the transition to democracy. It was during those years that painting left its traditional form to experiment with other techniques: etching, sculpture, drawing and, in some cases, even performance and film-making. Arranz-Bravo experimented with all the new forms and is one of the most complete and productive artists in the latest wave of modern Spanish painting. Eduardo Arranz-Bravo's life and artistic career have always been imbued with significance. In the 1970s, after his experience at the Sala Gaspar gallery, and living in the town of Vespella de Gaià (Tarragona), he signed with the Fernando Vijande gallery in Madrid, the reference gallery for modern art in Spain. In the early 1980s, he moved his studio to Cadaqués, playing an active role in the artistic and cultural awakening that was taking place in that magical seaside town, which attracted such artists as Salvador Dalí, Marcel Duchamp, Richard Hamilton and Diether Roth, and inspired the architect Bombelli to open a gallery. Then, in 1990, Arranz-Bravo moved to Vallvidrera, a village just a stone's throw from the center of Barcelona. There, he began a rich and rewarding period that has lasted until the present, a period of great productivity in terms of both painting and the visual arts in general, one clearly marked by his links to the US cities of New York and San Francisco. The Arranz-Bravo Foundation, located just outside Barcelona in L’hospitalet, was inaugurated in September 2009. The director, Albert Mercade, will be organizing several exhibitions in 2012 in keeping with one of the foundation’s core missions: to work with the younger generation of Spanish artists, to support their artistic visions, and to sponsor exhibitions which promote their latest achievements. Arranz-Bravo, is very open to new trends in artistic expression and understands the need for ongoing dialogue with all generations of artists – past, present, and future. Eduardo Arranz -Bravo has exhibited steadily since his early days with Rafael Bartolozzi at Sala Gaspar and has been represented by the Franklin Bowles Galleries in the United States since 1997. Over the course of his career Arranz-Bravo has garnered many accolades including the Gran premio and Medella de Oro at the International Biennale in Ibiza. He represented Spain at the XXXIX Venice Biennale, and was chosen as one of only three artists to help promote the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games through artistic work. His participation in this project resulted in the acquisition of 27 works by the Museo Olimpico in Lausanne, Switzerland. Currently the artist lives and works in Barcelona and Cadaques, Spain. His work is included in numerous public collections including the Museo Nacionál Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain; Skidmore Art Museum, Saratoga Springs, New York, USA; Museo d’Art Modern, Barcelona, Spain; Museu de Arte Moderna, São Paulo, Brazil; and the Museu d’Art Contemporani, Barcelona, Spain. Recent works of note are two important public sculpture commissions both located in L’Hospitalet : L’Acollidora (The Welcoming Woman) installed on a main street of the city, and the Pont de la Libertat (Bridge of Liberation) which spans a major crossroads in the city.