The exhibition ‘Paths’ presents works by artists Juanma González and Alice Máselníková. It is a part of a collaboration between the artist collective Flat Octopus (Sweden), Galique Art Space (Gyumri) and ACOSS AiR (Yerevan).
For Juanma González, drawing is a mindful act of reflection: a deliberate process that begins with the perceptions of our surroundings, from which the mind selects those impressions that resonate most deeply – some even touching the heart. In each piece, he translates these living insights into lines and washes, exploring the tension between precise stroke and fluid stain. Techniques as light itself blends across a scene, seeking to evoke the rhythms of human perception. These are drawings made by a sentient hand, whose pulse beats in harmony with the heart.
The new works shown at ODA represent an evolution of González’ Urban Fabric series, now expressed in vibrant colour through the interplay of colour pencils and water-soluble crayons.
Alice Máselníková is a Czech visual artist based in Sweden who works predominantly in oil paint, watercolour, and charcoal. With thin and translucent layers of colour she creates dreamlike images of mythologically inspired motifs: grotesque figures and elusive creatures, a metamorphosis between human and animal, that merge with the nature surrounding them. Her works carry traces of classical inspiration with references to medieval art and symbolism linked to flowers, plants and trees. In the muted palette of her works, we find ourselves in a strange, melancholic world, where the bizarre, beautiful and ambivalent intertwine.
To ODA: Heritage room brings Máselníková’s new works created specifically for the unique character of the venue. In her small and irregularly shaped oil paintings on linen, we meet characters inspired by tales from Armenian mythology. The large pastel and charcoal drawing on the walls connects fauna and flora in a dreamlike manner, to become a permanent piece once carved into the surface.
ARTISTS BIOS
Juanma González combines experimental and traditional practices – drawing, photography, site-specific installation, together with performance and art intervention. He studied old photographic techniques at Universidad Europea (Madrid, 1999) and graduated for Fine Arts at Universidad Complutense (Madrid, 2013). In 2016, he received his MFA from the Royal Institute of Art (KKH), Stockholm, where he has also coordinated and led two workshops for students and professors: one workshop-trip to Madrid in 2019 and one day-workshop inspired by studiecirkel in 2020. Last year, he taught at Murcia’s Art School (Spain).
In March 2020, he arrived in his hometown in Spain to assist his family amidst the uncertainties of COVID-19. For 45 days, they were confined to a 70m² apartment with going out prohibited. Surrounded by sorrowful news and detached relationships, González turned to drawing as a way to keep his mind wandering. On blank paper, marks became traces of the outdoor world he longed for. Since then, he has been collecting these artworks under the title “Urban Fabric,” a series of ink-on-paper drawings. The Urban Fabric series has been exhibited in Sweden, Denmark, US and Spain. Some artworks have been purchased by public institutions such as Statens Konstråd and Botkyrka Konsthall.
***
Alice Máselníková (b. 1989, Zlín, Czech Republic) is a visual artist living in Edsbruk in the Swedish countryside and working in Stockholm and on the west coast of the country. She holds a BA in Fine Art and Philosophy from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, Dundee, Scotland, and an MA in Curating Art from Stockholm University. She has also studied at the Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Spain, and took a course at the Royal Institute of Art in Stockholm. Her work has previously been shown at Krognoshuset in Lund, Liljevalchs and Berg Gallery in Stockholm, Gallery of Fine Art in Náchod, Czech Republic, Köttinspektionen in Uppsala, Torrance Art Museum in Los Angeles and Altán Klamovka in Prague, among others. She collaborates with Berg Gallery in Stockholm and WWW Contemporary.
In addition to painting, she writes poetry and works as a curator, editor and consultant in cultural funding. She is the creative director of the art fair Supermarket, co-founder of Artist-Run Network Europe and founder of the artist-run collective Flat Octopus.
Flat Octopus 