Manzanares del Real 2022

Curator: This is Alejandro Cabeza's "Manzanares del Real," created in 2022. Cabeza’s landscape is painted en plein air, capturing the light and atmosphere of the scene. Editor: It strikes me as simultaneously serene and vibrant. The texture created by the brushstrokes almost vibrates on the surface. The colour relations create quite a sense of warmth, that bright umber foreground! Curator: Indeed. Cabeza, as a contemporary Spanish artist, positions himself within a complex socio-political history of landscape painting in Spain. One can see a through-line to earlier artists grappling with the representation of national identity and regional pride. Editor: Looking at the composition, I am struck by how the arrangement of trees anchors the piece. They function as a screen, drawing the eye deeper into the painted space while simultaneously flattening the perspective. Did Cabeza make any statements regarding his structural concerns in paintings? Curator: While direct statements might be scant, the choice to depict Manzanares del Real could imply an engagement with themes of environmentalism and the relationship between urban and rural spaces. Consider, for example, how that mountain sits silently overlooking what we see; its mute grandeur provides, perhaps, a melancholy context. Editor: An interesting counterpoint is found with the paint itself. The thick application and visible brushstrokes almost become the subject; consider how the foreground practically dissolves under the loose application of paint! Cabeza appears less concerned with mimicry, perhaps. Curator: Perhaps he suggests that memory and perception are equally valid filters. There’s a negotiation of what "real" or relevant. What elements of the landscape do we elevate, what we emphasize. Editor: The overall effect evokes the feeling of being present in a real, tangible place—filtered by the artist's eye. Curator: I agree, reflecting on Cabeza’s artistic decisions helps us realize the complex layers inherent in any landscape representation. Editor: It pushes beyond simple representation; instead it is using its methods to explore how a landscape can trigger phenomenological awareness within the viewer.