This time we propose a unique walk through a video that, we imagine, will captivate you. In just seven minutes, the creation of the documentary maker Pedro Ballesteros will introduce you to the work and personality of the Spanish sculptor Jaume Plensa (Barcelona, 1955), in a fascinating trailer.
Plensa, trained at the La Llotja School of Art and Design and at the Sant Jordi School of Fine Arts, today one of the most prominent artists on the international scene, places his work largely in public space. His sculptures, of great proportions and various materials, have been installed in numerous countries such as Spain, Japan, England, Italy, France, Russia, Korea, Germany, Canada, Mexico and the United States. In his career, he has obtained awards and distinctions; He has exhibited in prestigious museums, was a professor at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris and regularly cooperates with the School of the Art Institute of Chicago as a visiting professor. Currently, his creations are marketed at the Galerie Lelong & Co, with its offices in Paris and New York, and the Richard Gray Gallery in Chicago. (1)
In "Can you hear me?" (2019), the complicity of the director and the artist allows us to access the mechanisms of his plastic creation. Plensa talks about the questions that arise when we face it and how art can transform our way of seeing and being in the world. Since the end of 2017, a team under the direction of Pedro Ballesteros accompanied him in his workshop and on his trips to different countries such as the United States, Sweden, France and Japan. Inaugurations, visits to his emblematic works and his monumental installations take place under the intimate guidance of a spontaneous, captivating creator.
The 75-minute long documentary won numerous awards at international festivals, including the ARTE NON STOP FESTIVAL / BA2020 where it was selected as the best film, winning four awards.
Shall we enjoy his trailer now? You're one click away: https://vimeo.com/508348081
We appreciate the information, reading and images provided by the director Pedro Ballesteros, the producer Jordi Marqués, and the Lelong & Co and Richard Gray Gallery galleries.
1. In 2012, the Galerie Lelong published the catalog “Jaume Plensa. Silhouettes”, the text of which is authored by Alberto Manguel, former director of the National Library of Buenos Aires.