Infusion of Bright Colours. Can Framis

“Why do two colours, put one next to the other, sign? Can one really explain this?” Picasso

Yago Hortal & Peter Halley, painting — Yago Hortal & Peter Halley, H+H3

I had this kind of feeling, when I went to Can Framis: that the artworks, the details, the textures, and the space itself – they were all ‘singing’. I was not expecting such an explosion of vibrant colours and bold shapes, and to be honest little did I know about Catalan contemporary painting before this visit.

Víctor Perez-Porro, Deslizantes — Víctor Pérez-Porro, Des-li-zan-tes, 526 x 223 cm

Museums slowly begin to reopen here in Barcelona and, until June the 12th when Can Framis is scheduled to welcome visitors again, here is a glimpse into its magic world.

Can Framis museum displays around three hundred works from the 1960’s onward, belonging to artists born or living in Catalunya. Many of the canvases are impressively large, and their scale gave me the feeling that I can somehow see through, or see inside, or get swept inside the universe of each work.

Can Framis was a factory built at the end of the 18th century. After having fallen into disuse, it was converted in 2009 into a museum displaying the contemporary painting collection of the Vila Casas Foundation.

Manu Algueró, Untitled (detail – tiny metal discs float among the thick strokes of paint)

Frederic Amat - Els amants — Frederic Amat, Els amants (The lovers), a canvas made with paint and wax

Josep Cisquella, Passeig de Gracia. This is not a photography: the style of Cisquella (industrial engineer, statistics teacher at the Polytechnic University of Barcelona, and painter) consists in painting details of the city with incredible attention to detail.

The conversion of the former factory buildings which today host the Can Framis museum was undertaken by BAAS architects, who added a third volume to the two existing constructions, creating an U-shaped space with an inner plaza for art display and events.