It is a pleasure to present, as part of our summer programme at the Aurora Vigil-Escalera Art Gallery in Gijón, ‘Plural’: a group exhibition that brings together – and will continue to bring together throughout its various runs – some of the most representative and recognisable voices from our artistic programme, in an encounter between artistic languages and sensibilities that enrich one another.

The exhibition opens with Javier Torices’ acrylics, in which the sea becomes much more than a landscape. The impeccably portrayed light and movement of the water are pure emotion, the result of a deep understanding of painting and patient preparatory study. In the distance, the hill of Santa Catalina and Chillida’s iconic sculpture greet us in a beautiful tribute to the city which, year after year, welcomes the Toledo-born artist with fresh acclaim.

We continue with a knowing nod from Moisés Yagües, whose tributes to the masters Keith Haring and Joan Miró in his celebrated series *Los Ayudantes* explore the creative process through his tiny protagonists with friendly features and energetic poses, always ready for any artistic challenge. Nearby, Iván Quesada alternates delicate small-format landscapes with scenes on large canvases in which a peaceful day in the countryside or the interior of a studio takes on a theatrical quality thanks to his unique sense of humour, his astonishing composition and technique—heirs to the great artists of the nineteenth century—and a distinct contemporary sensibility.

The prominence of the characters, set against a narrative backdrop that invites the viewer to linger, is also evident in the works of Carol Solar, which draw on the traditions of comics, illustration and popular culture. Amidst vibrant colours and compositions brimming with minute details, the artist invites the viewer to complete the narrative, in the same way that Jorge Hernández relies on the viewer’s ability to find meaning in the decontextualised objects featured in his dreamlike compositions, encased in resin. *El Nostálgico* depicts its protagonist between a car – always with that vintage aesthetic so characteristic of his work – and a monumental Frigopie ice lolly. A call to memory and childlike innocence entangled in the logic of a dream.

The figurative tradition continues with the delicate brushwork of the surrealist Mario Soria, who draws us into a unique universe of carefully crafted repetitions and duplications that evoke a sense of almost bewilderment, to which the unexpected and alien-looking flora and fauna also contribute. With a great sense of humour, he completes his composition beyond the canvas by incorporating toys attached to the frame, which break the traditional boundaries of the painting and transform the work into a hybrid of painting and sculpture.

Our tour takes us to the architectural façades of Francisco Mayor Maestre, whose bricks are built up with layer upon layer of glazes, superimposing academic drawing, playful collage elements that catch the eye, and a mischievous use of spray paint that ‘vandalises’ his own works. His skilful rhythm, born of the interplay and disruption of geometric patterns, links him to the meticulous geometric abstraction of Anita Suárez de Lezo, and a new piece from her favourite series, *Colornection*—an exploration of colour’s ability to evoke emotions and create spaces for contemplation.

The relationship between colour and emotion also forms the basis of Santiago Picatoste’s work, although in the Mallorcan artist’s pieces, delicate order is replaced by a frenetic and entirely free application of pigments onto canvas and paper. Fluorescent hues and intense gestural expression are also evident in the works of Ismael Lagares.

An explosion of colour, texture and energy that even seems to break free from the canvas to form his playful ‘little dogs’ made of paint.

Among the many works that will be on display in the gallery over the coming months, we highlight the stone sculptures by two completely different artists, each with a wholly personal approach. Tadanori Yamaguchi views sculptural material as a living agent with which the artist converses, and through which he also communicates with the viewer in a dialogue between eye and object, reflection and intuition, nature and human intervention. In contrast to this introspective approach, Mico Rabuñal transforms collective memory, nostalgia and popular culture into an exercise in technical virtuosity, in which familiar-looking objects—carved and polychromed with the utmost care from marble—become timeless icons capable of evoking both memory and surprise at the same time.