Guillermo Rubí
I Hate the Kids
21 September–26 November, 2012
Opening: Thursday, September 20, 8pm
Pelaires Centre Cultural Contemporani
Carrer Can Verí, 3.
07001 Palma de Mallorca, Spain
Hours: Mon–Fri, 10–1:30pm / 4:30–8pm; Sat 10–1:30pm
Admission is free
T +34 971 723 696
info [at] pelaires.com
Centre Cultural Contemporani Pelaires will be hosting the 3rd individual exhibition by Mallorca-born artist Guillermo Rubí (Palma, 1971). Under the title I Hate the Kids, this exhibition marks the start of Palma’s artistic season, with “La Nit de l’Art.”
I Hate the Kids is made up of a series of the artist’s recent paintings. In keeping with the artist’s usual style, these works feature a combination of techniques (on this occasion the use of acrylic and synthetic enamel paint on canvas or aluminium), that reflect an exquisite style and skill. Guillermo Rubí bases his work on the modification and/or distortion of images (photographs or screenshots taken from a selection of films), superimposing a reticule or crisscrossed lines, trapping the image in the background of the canvas, thereby encouraging the observer to explore the work from the perspective of both the image itself and the underlying meaning.
The objective of I Hate the Kids is to consider the complex relationship between painting as an art form and the message it sends out. The artist adopted the title of the track “I hate the kids” by US post-hardcore band Hot Snakes as the leitmotif for the whole project, thereby enabling visitors to the exhibition to uncover (or not) the links between Guillermo Rubí’s work and this musical sub-culture. Delving further into this area reveals that many hardcore punk bands have used “Hate the Kids” as a statement (State of Alert, Turbonegro, Love the Music/Hate The Kids, etc), not just as the basis for the titles of their songs but also to transmit their anti-system ideological stance. However, this revolutionary message does not lie at the heart of these works, but is rather an excuse to point to certain aspects of the wealthier echelons of society in a manner that is most certainly disturbing.
In short, the works of Guillermo Rubí redirect the interests, fears and concerns of the artist -either directly or indirectly, or through the insertion of visible or subliminal phrases. Yet we must not lose sight of the fact that what is really important is to obtain an insight into the way the artist clings to painting, adopting a firm stance in an age when the speed of images implies their immediate and rapid absorption. Here, in contrast, we are forced to take a long lingering look, stopping to contemplate his work and analysing a type of ‘writing’ that is far more specific and that leads us into the depths of a contemporary discourse.
Guillermo Rubí (Palma, 1971) lives and works in Mallorca. Basing his works on painting and assemblage, his recent individual exhibitions include If I had a Gun at the Nieves Hernández Gallery in Madrid (2011) and All Now with Wings at the Pelaires Gallery in Palma de Mallorca (2010). His works have also featured in various collective exhibitions and art fairs.
About Pelaires Centre for Contemporary Culture
The Pelaires gallery was opened in 1969 by Josep Pinya Bonnin and provided the first space for exhibiting works of art from the second half of the 20th century by major artists such as Miró, Chillida, Tàpies, Saura, Manolo Valdés, etc.
Since 1990, Pelaires has had two galleries. The Centre for Contemporary Culture is housed in a 17th-century palace and includes two large exhibition halls that have hosted exhibitions of works by artists such as Jannis Kounellis, Rebecca Horn, Miquel Navarro, Rachel Howard, Mimmo Paladino, Nigel Hall, Jordi Alcaraz or Bernardí Roig. The Pelaires Gallery is a smaller, more modern space used to exhibit smaller works and photographs.
Today, Pelaires is Spain’s longest-standing active contemporary art gallery. Its director, Frederic Pinya, together with his father, who founded this space, retains the innovative spirit and international vocation that have characterised it right from the start, through a consolidated presence at art fairs, the promotion of the artists Pelaires represents abroad and the organisation of events aimed at promoting their work.
*Image above:
Guillermo Rubí, Just stole it somewhere (left) / She truly believes the lie (right), 2012. Acrylic paint and synthetic enamel on aluminum. 190 x 148 cm (74.80 x 58.26 inches). © Guillermo Rubí. Courtesy CCCPelaires, Mallorca, Spain.