Jose Maria Yturralde - 'Geometrias del alma'

‘Geometries of the soul’, a solo exhibition by José María Yturralde (Cuenca, 1942), at the collective event Nit de l’Art 2024.

The exhibition is taking place in two different locations: At La Misericordia in Palma, provided by the Consell de Mallorca, and at the Galeria Maior exhibition space in Pollença.

In Palma it is shown the majestic piece “Entrelazamiento II”, an enormous acrylic on canvas measuring 190 cm by 380 cm that features a manifestation of the samadhi of the Zen tradition, that would remind “illumination in which the meditator transcends phenomenal appearance and is thus freed from samsara (the cycle of birth, death and reincarnation)”. Tonal rhythms, visual minimalism, kineticism in the vibration of colour temperatures become an essential approach in front of the spectator's eyes.

At the Maior gallery space in Pollença, several pieces from two series of works are displayed: “Haiku” and “Enso”. The first one originates from Yturralde’s interest in this form of Japanese poetry, as he says “for its stripped-down luminosity, reductionism, instantaneous energy”. The first piece of work from this series, “Haiku del Norte”, dated in 1999, was exhibited in 2000 at the Casal Solleric in Palma.

On the other hand, the series "Enso" refers to the Japanese word meaning “circle” and transcends what geometrically and calligraphically emerges from that figure whose nucleus points to the void that in this mentioned tradition constitutes the origin of everything, the vibratory emission from the essentialist, minimalist parameters (in this case both issues are linked) reaches its zenith. The first artpiece in this series dates back to 2014, in which, one might say, all marks of José María Yturralde's artworks have been condensed to its maximum expression keeping both the convergence between art and science and Western and Eastern thought.

José María Yturralde was awarded the Spanish National Prize for Visual Arts in 2020. He has held numerous solo and group exhibitions at universities and museums, such as the Museum of Contemporary Art in Madrid, 1973, IVAM Valencia, 1999, CAAC in Malaga, 2015, etc. In institutions, international fairs and galleries in Spain, Germany, USA, Russia, France, Austria, Italy, Sweden, Japan, Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico, etc.

Many of his paintings are held in the most important collections and museums, among others, IVAM in Valencia, Reina Sofía in Madrid, Fundación Juan March in Palma and Madrid, Fundació Pilar i Joan Miró in Mallorca, Museo Arte Abstracto in Cuenca, Brooklin Museum in New York, ...