The young Spanish-Colombian artist, Juliana Plexxo, returns to Barcelona to present her latest collection, Ether: Uniting Contraries. Since her last exhibition in Barcelona in 2021, Juliana has been growing internationally by leaps and bounds.
After her most recent trips to Italy, Luxembourg or Monaco, the young Juliana Plexxo was welcomed last July 5 at Jok Gardens in Barcelona where she presented her latest creations to collectors and press. We had the opportunity to interview her and learn a little about her origins, her new collection and her short, but promising artistic career.
Horse: How would you define your new collection?
Juliana Plexxo: If I had to define it with one word it would be the word mystical. I have been painting since I was a child, but I never imagined being able to present it to the world. To be able to connect with people, and for people to connect with the paintings themselves, that’s something very important. That they have the opportunity to understand what I transmit through the work, and also, that they are part of it.
This collection is related to the mystical essence, and I named it Ether. Because if we analyze some cultures; Buddhism, Chamanic or Hinduism, ether is the essence that unites the opposite poles, for example, heat and cold, the duality of things.
Juliana between Virgili Barbará and Fermín Pérez, from Andreu Marcs and Arts, responsible for the ÉTER frames.
H: How did you start in the world of painting?
J.P: The growth was very rapid and unexpected, I was very clear that I wanted to radiate my art to the world. And that’s where the name Plexxo comes from, solar complex, which is the third chakra in Hindu culture. Its meaning is that all human beings are born with a gift, and the one I found through art is to show my culture, my roots and my femininity. And to do it through large scale paintings or with engravings.
As a child, in Colombia, I encountered an art that was death and life,” says Juliana.
Juliana found a great connection with art as a child, reflecting through painting everything she felt. Of Colombian origin, Juliana explains that her childhood was a difficult time; she lost her father, a journalist by profession, for explaining what many were not interested in. A father who was rooted in tauromaquia, and who in each of his works can be found the eyes of the brave animal. Represented for her as a noble and superior animal that dies fighting for its life Once her father dies, she moves to Ecuador, to an area where she connects with nature and the indigenous culture of the city of Otavalo.
J.P: The city of Otavalo has a mystical culture full of surprises. I also discovered Oswaldo Guayasamín who was an artist who fought for the world and its roots. And that has been my great dream, to have the responsibility of transmitting my roots through art.
The artist with some of the works from the Ether collection.
H: How did you start with engraving?
J.P: The Joan Barbará workshop in Barcelona chose me to learn. In the 20th century Joan Barbará was a genius in engraving, and great artists like Picasso or Dalí went to his studio to create and I was lucky enough to be chosen to go in 2019. It was Joan Barbará’s son, Virgili, the new manager of the workshop, and I have been growing for five years. In addition,this collection is the thanks, because you have to honor those people from the past who have helped.
H: Do you use one or several techniques to create your works?
J.P: UI mainly use engraving, which is an ancestral technique, and for me it is a challenge. It has lost its importance, but century by century it continues. Besides, engraving has a very long process, and for me it is important to give relevance to such a long-lasting process.
As Julia comments, her technique is not limited to engraving, she also destroys the copper plate that she uses for each piece. “This way I can do the same thing with a different perspective, the engraving is always there, but on many occasions I mix it with oil, acrylic, and that is what gives it the strength and personality, being a unique work“, comments the artist.
One of the pieces of the Ether collection, where the figure of the eyes is present.
H: What do you think about NFTs?
J.P: For me digital art should be a tool of real art. In my case, I also make art with augmented reality, which I think is a bridge between real art and digital art.
In some of my works, if you use the application with which I collaborate you can see through your cell phone the animation that is recreated, but to be able to see it, the art has to be real, physical. I am very faithful to the thought that technology is a tool for an artist, but not art itself.
H: What are the last exhibitions and collaborations you have done?
J.P: I was lucky enough to contact AMI, in Monte-Carlo to present the work in front of Prince Albert. So I was able to transmit my culture in a foreign country, and opening a door for people to know and see the indigenous culture, which is what I show the most. Also, I was in Luxembourg, and a lot of people showed up, many Spanish people came.
One of the artist’s objectives is to make women visible in the artistic field.
Her entry to the international markets came unexpectedly, being one of the new Latin American artists most in demand for her talent. Nominated to Young Talent of 2022 by the University of Berkeley California, chosen as one of the 50 most creative figures by Forbes-Colombia, or being the first woman artist to exhibit at the Capilla del Hombre in Ecuador, have been some of the recognitions she has achieved. In addition to being invited to exhibit her work before the royal family of Monaco during the Formula Grand Prix 1 in Monte-Carlo.
Images provided by the brands mentioned above
