This September, kicking off the cultural season, Barcelona hosts the essential annual event to discover all the novelties presented by the city's art galleries. From September 15 to 18, the Barcelona Gallery Weekend (BGW) reaches its eighth edition, with the participation of 32 galleries: 26 in Barcelona, 5 in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, and one in Santa Margarida i els Monjos, in the Penedès.
Organized by the association Art Barcelona, the cultural event highlights the work of art galleries as spaces that generate culture and knowledge, places that allow connection and encounter between artists, collectors, the public, and institutions. Barcelona Gallery Weekend vindicates the gallery as a fundamental pillar of the artistic ecosystem and celebrates its contribution to the development of art and culture.
All exhibitions, free and open access, will be inaugurated simultaneously this Thursday, September 15: from 12 p.m. for professional public, and from 6 p.m. for the general public. This edition presents numerous novelties, among which a change at the head of the management team stands out. Andrea Rodriguez Novoa (Gijón, 1979) and Mariña Álvarez Piño (Compostela, 1988), both closely linked to the world of contemporary art, are the new co-directors of the BGW. We talk with them to learn firsthand about the novelties of this benchmark cultural event in our city.
--- What are the objectives of the Barcelona Gallery Weekend?
--- BGW wants to reinforce and make visible Barcelona's rich and varied artistic fabric, encourage collecting, and highlight the work of galleries as culture-generating spaces open to the public. It does so with an event in which for four days the opening of the season in the galleries of Barcelona, L'Hospitalet, and Santa Margarida i els Monjos is celebrated, emphasizing the work that gallerists and artists carry out throughout the year through an intense program of exhibitions and parallel activities.
--- In these eight years of the project's trajectory, do you believe these objectives are being achieved?
--- BGW has become a benchmark event in Barcelona, the festival of art and culture that every year marks the beginning of the season, attracting both the general public of Barcelona and professionals and collectors from local, national and international spheres who visit us every year. We continue to work to transmit the message that galleries are open and free spaces that function as vectors of the most current art, indispensable in the city's cultural ecosystem.
--- What are this year's novelties compared to previous editions?
--- The general program is focused on the exhibition proposals of the participating galleries --this year 32 spaces presenting the work of almost 70 national and international artists-- and on the parallel activities that complement them: guided tours, commented visits by artists, curators, gallery owners, presentations, tastings or visits specially aimed at families with children.
As a novelty, BGW2022 includes the Paseos con las Comisarias (Walks with the Curators): six routes prepared by six independent curators from our local context, who propose another way of touring the participating galleries. The public will be able to download the curators' texts from our website starting Thursday the 15th in the afternoon to take the walks autonomously, but from the perspective of each curator: Carolina Jiménez, Claudia Elies, Caterina Almirall, Carolina Ciuti, Rosa Lleó and Beatriz Escudero.
The Professional Program expands the events and the networking, which had been reduced due to the pandemic, aimed at collectors, representatives of institutions, curators and other active agents in the art world, both national and international. We design tailor-made visits and exclusive activities to showcase Barcelona's artistic offerings and foster synergies between galleries and our guests.
This year we are once again presenting an acquisition program through which private entities commit to acquiring at least one work from those exhibited in the participating galleries. The Vila Casas Foundation, faithful to this initiative since its first edition, is joined by two other local entities: Cosentino City Barcelona, a meeting point for architecture and interior design professionals and an entity that supports culture and art, and La Roca Village, a destination for fashion, gastronomy, and art experiences with more than 150 boutiques that hosts artistic initiatives that highlight local talent for visitors to discover.
--- Can the general public sign up for the commented and family routes offered?
--- The general program of exhibitions and special activities in the participating galleries is aimed at all citizens without distinction. In addition, the BGW offers the guided tours ARCO Gallery Walks ---16 accompanied itineraries that offer a perfect opportunity to visit the exhibitions with gallerists and artists--- and also the BGW Familiar, two routes specially designed for families with children, led by curator Alexandra Laudo. Capacity is limited, so prior reservation is required.
--- What does the acquisition program consist of? What are the advantages of acquiring a work during the BGW?
--- The Acquisition Program is aimed at foundations and private companies that commit to incorporating works exhibited in the participating galleries into their collections. This initiative contributes to revitalizing the art market and the relationship between galleries and collectors, essential agents for promoting the work of artists, and therefore, the participating entities are supporting creation and the work of art galleries.
--- Can you recommend one of the exhibitions and explain why we shouldn't miss it?
--- The program as a whole is as diverse as it is interesting. It brings together the proposals of 32 galleries with different interests and ways of working, which can awaken the interest of equally diverse audiences. What we recommend is to explore the exhibition program and review the agenda of special activities, allowing for a deeper understanding of the contents of the exhibitions through special activities such as dialogues, guided tours, and other recreational events.
--- Before co-directing the BGW, what was your connection to the world of contemporary art?
--- Andrea Rodríguez Novoa: after several years of practice in architecture, I became involved in the art world after pursuing art curatorship training in France. Since 2010, I have developed diverse work as an independent art curator, which includes curating exhibitions and projects in independent spaces and local, national, and international institutions, as well as writing criticism. Additionally, since 2012, I have co-directed BAR project, an independent art residency and training program that I founded with two other curators in Barcelona.
Mariña Á. Pino: I have been the coordinator of the BGW since 2018 under the direction of Susanna Corchia. Before that, I worked in the field of production and coordination of other projects in Barcelona, including an art gallery.