This exhibition presents a selection of works by Miquel Vilà (Barcelona, 1940) conceived as a retrospective. It is only one of the many possible journeys that could be constructed around Vilà’s pictorial proposal, which—sincere and direct—reveals and demands the power of painting in and of itself as a poetic language, and its plastic presence beyond pictorial genres, themes, and fashions.
Vilà evokes a struggle through the nerve of the brush, as in his interiors that bend inward with libraries in convulsion. The painter does not need to sweeten or embellish reality, for his message is harsh and abrasive, and, surely for this reason, his compositions are always suffused with the sense that something tremendous is about to happen. The boundless force of his painting confronts us and invites reflection. Thus, tortuous interiors, objects cut out against a beach and set against the pathos of nature, abandoned urban landscapes, or solitary roads—all seem on the verge of being devoured by a storm that shakes the viewer. The recurring series on bombings explores this same potency of destruction as a generative force of a new reality.
Crepuscular light allows Vilà to dwell on the achievement of contrasts through shadows and thick, material impasto, while also providing an existential, vibrant tone that connects with the Italian metaphysical painting he so greatly admires. This light—poised between mystery and nightmare—covers everything and becomes a tool that activates reflection on the physicality of matter, as well as meditation on temporality. No anecdote or story is needed; the object alone overflows and impresses in its own right, and its personality and vigor are achieved through pure painting. Vilà scrupulously defends craftsmanship and, above all, stands as a champion of painting as a language. For him, painting is a refuge from the hostile world around him, but also the most skillful and reliable weapon against adversity. His compositions are a hymn of resistance against the agony that, according to Vilà, contemporary painting is suffering.
