Sergi Aguilar

Considered one of the principal Spanish sculptors of his generation, Sergi Aguilar was born in Barcelona (1946). After studying at the Escola Massana and the Conservatori de les Arts del Llibre of Barcelona, his early work consisted in the design and construction of jewelry, but a trip to Paris introduced him to the work of Brancusi, Julio González and the Russian Constructivists, and by 1972 he decided to dedicate himself definitively to sculpture. Since 1979 his work has developed into a synthesis of Minimalism and Geometric Rationalism characterized by an exquisite attention to detail.

During the 1990s Aguilar’s work experienced a profound conceptual change. “Until then, both my two-dimensional and three-dimensional work responded to geometric structures that were related to each other in space and in the way they were constructed,” he remarks. “At that time the work took on references to geometry or geographies resulting from personal experiences of travels (notions of orientation and culture). I needed to relate the work with real limits and structures. Words like frontier, construction or sign are basic ideas; they are the point of departure of my current work."

Drawings and preparatory sketches form an important part of his oeuvre. Developed in great measure from architectural or cartographic plans, Aguilar uses signs and marks to trace his own experiences through journeys. The integration of photography or other elements into the work imbues it with geographic references that take us to places devoid of human presence yet charged with mysticism. For Sergi Aguilar, it is a space that transcends the limits of the work, a place to initiate the viewer into his own journey of discovery.

Sergi Aguilar has exhibited widely in museums and galleries both in Spain and internationally. His public installations can be seen principally in Catalunya and in the collections of museums such as the Solomon Guggenheim Museum, New York; the Reina Sofía Museum, Madrid; MACBA, Barcelona; Victoria and Albert Museum, London; and the Fundació Caixa de Pensions, Barcelona among others.

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