Trajeron a mis playas un mundo entre las garras del león
They brought to my beaches a world between the claws of the lion
Silkscreen on fabric, bamboo, cement, clay, plaster, photocopies and historical documents, various dimensions, 2019
The group of works that make up the exhibition "Trajeron a mis playas un mundo entre las garras del león"* explores the more or less visible traces of the Spanish colonial project in Morocco at the heart of Barcelona's Parc de la Ciutadella, linking three sculptures that predate the creation of the Moroccan protectorate: "The Lion Hunter" (1883), also known as "The African", "Barcelona to Prim" (1887) and "To Víctor Balaguer" (1910). Through the juxtaposition of monument casts, fragments from Balaguer's book "Jornadas de Gloria o Los Españoles en África" (1860) and archival images printed on pareos sold in the park by migrant street-sellers, the installation questions the involvement of artistic and literary circles in the expansionist propaganda of the late 19th century and its echoes in public space today.
Produced in the context of a year-long residency at the Institut Verdaguer highschool (Barcelona) with the students Arles Aguilar, Lua ix Balam, Joel Bercedo, Lucia Guzman, Daniil Ivanov, Óscar Jiménez, Lina Marsi, Pablo Penedo, Mateo Pérez, Cristhian Carlo Pullpaxi, Anita Schiappa, Ximena Solares, Lola Valiente, Arnau Vivas, Jiayi Xu and the teacher Miriam Lanzaco as part of the programme En Residència . With the support of the Photographic Archive of Barcelona (AFB), the Historical Archive of the City of Barcelona (AHCB) and El Born Cultural and Memorial Center, Barcelona.
Process / Publication in Spanish or Catalan with a text by Lucia Piedra Galarraga.
*The title is a fragment of Manuel Angelón's patriotic poem "Las Dos Españas", published in "Jornadas de Gloria".
Exhibition "Trajeron a mis playas un mundo entre las garras del león" at El Born Cultural and Memorial Center, Barcelona (2019). Photos by Roberto Ruiz.