Meet Pigment Gallery

It’s a real treat to introduce you to a new gallery to our online marketplace; Pigment Gallery who are joining us for the second edition of The Affordable Online Art Fair (9 April – 3 May 2021) from sunny Spain. Gallery Director Ferran Josa, explains how their gallery pivots in the ever-changing art market and discusses some of their key artists’ methods and inspirations. Read on to learn more and to pick up some useful tips on buying art.

Hi Ferran, we’re delighted that Pigment Gallery will be exhibiting at The Affordable Online Art Fair, bringing your range of creative talent from the beautiful city of Barcelona. Can you tell us what you have planned for the fair?

We’re very excited to showcase our artists in The Affordable Online Art Fair, we should probably start by talking about the concept of a virtual fair. Due to the pandemic it’s a new format to the art world, one that has come to stay, and I personally believe it’s a good complementary experience, but it will never be an absolute substitute. Rather, I think the two ways of shopping art will coexist in a hybrid ecosystem. Because of the online format, at Pigment we want to showcase very powerful artworks that capture the attention of the collector straight away. We want to stand out from the crowd!

We have selected affordable pieces of very talented artists from our local art scene. From the elegance and strong concept of Marta Fàbregas’ colonised women, the surreal hyperrealism of Luis Feo’s Star Wars Lego dioramas, to the mystery of the floating villages in South East Asia by Ruben Martin de Lucas, and the ironic, contemporary sculptures of Carlos Tárdez. Finally, it’s impossible to forget the extraordinary work of David Morago. His well-loved etchings of zebras are developed using different materials and the result is a unique series that is ideal for The Affordable Online Art Fair. Each piece brings together size, beauty, modernity and elegance.

Pigment Gallery’s ethos is to develop with the ever-changing world around us, can you tell us how you keep your finger on the pulse of the art world as it develops?

Our gallery philosophy was originally a ‘traditional’ gallery model, but recently this has been shifting, with the gallery evolving to an adaptable business model focused on customer needs. We love participating in international art fairs, which offer collectors the opportunity to visit many art galleries in one place. In a normal year we attend around ten art fairs around the world, from Los Angeles to South Korea.

We pride ourselves on our capacity for reinvention, whether this is new synergies, virtual fairs, pop-ups in different cities around the world or digital platforms. Change and adaptability are necessary in our constantly transforming world and we strongly believe that today we have to have a foot in each of these scenarios. Our goal is to connect with our ever-diversifying clientele including younger generations who are demanding new ways to discover and consume art. 

One of the artists that stands out from your roster is Carlos Tárdez, who creates fantastic pop sculptures which seem to take a humorous and wry view of contemporary society. Can you tell us more about his work?

Carlos absorbs references from mythology, celebrities and caricatures like ‘the gentleman’, ‘the king’ or ‘the witch’ and plays with these concepts, creating his own cleverly ironic characters. Being part of his game and keeping the mind open to double meaning is essential to understanding his sculptures. For this fair we are presenting Carlos’ small-scale sculptures made from resin or bronze. His works are high quality and are either artist’s proofs or in maximum editions of seven.

We’ve seen Carlos’ artistic recognition increasing in two ways. In Spain he is renowned for winning art prizes and participating in international exhibitions. On the other hand, his social media reach and visibility has grown. Carlos’ sculptures are a great way to acquire an original artwork for an affordable price and from an artist with growing recognition.

We love Marta Fàbregas’ mixed media photographic collages, which feature images of women from the end of the 19^th – beginning of the 20^th Centuries. The women featured endured hardships which seems to translate into raw, personal artworks. What draws Marta to the subjects?

The works by Marta Fàbregas are magnificent. She focuses on women who have historically been victims of colonization, from all kind of geographical provenances, races, époques, political contexts and backgrounds. Her works showcase women colonized by society, economy, mental illness or even by culture itself. In her series ‘Colonized’ Marta chooses her imagery carefully and seeks to bring dignity to these women. Her technique is what she defines as ‘transphotography’: a method of combining different photographic techniques and applying them to watercolour paper. She then sews the images to a fabric background to form the collage. Her works bring together three important aspects of art: beauty, technique and most importantly, a strong message.

What advice do you have to first time art-buyers that are visiting the fair?

It is key to enter with a very open mindset and allow themselves to be guided by their instincts. There is a lot of information online and a saturation of pictures, so they need to hold onto their first impressions and keep in mind those artworks that held their attention from the very beginning. They should be their own curators and trust that they are the ones constructing their own taste. After that, research the background of each artwork: the artist’s history and motivations as well as the gallery’s trajectory and perspective.

In any collecting process it is important to let yourself be motivated by your senses while also knowing any decision could impact an artist’s progressive growth. Artists are real people working hard behind the scenes and alongside the gallery to showcase the best possible art buying experience.

If you’re feeling inspired to delve into the world of Pigment Gallery and discover more from their artists? Explore their online viewing room here but don’t forget to take Ferran Josa’s advice and note artworks that jump out at you as you go!

The Affordable Online Art Fair is open throughout the month, until midnight on Monday 3 May, so until then, you have plenty of time to browse to your hearts content.

Main image: Ferran Josa, Gallery Director, Pigment Gallery.