With great enthusiasm and Christmas spirit, CalleArte has the honor of offering its audience a special gift: the presentation of Javier Velasco, an exceptional artist born in La Línea, whose trajectory has left an indelible mark on Spanish and international contemporary art.
One of the most notable moments of his career was his participation in the prestigious Venice Biennale in 2001, where he presented an innovative installation that overflowed with creativity and provocation. This work not only marked a turning point in his professional life but also attracted the attention of international audiences and critics, positioning him as an indispensable name in the global art scene.
Over the years, Javier Velasco has maintained a constant presence at major art fairs, notably his participation in ARCO, where his works have captivated collectors, curators, and art lovers. Furthermore, his creations are part of important private and public collections, consolidating his legacy in contemporary art.
His work is not limited to the visual; each piece tells a story, invites reflection, and awakens deep emotions in those who have the opportunity to contemplate it. With a combination of impeccable technique, innovation, and sensitivity, Velasco continues to be a source of inspiration for new generations of artists.
Today, we invite you to immerse yourself in his fascinating world through this exclusive interview, where we will explore his trajectory, his motivations, and his unique vision of contemporary art. Discover with us the magic and impact of Javier Velasco’s talent!
CalleArte: How would you describe your trajectory from your beginnings as an emerging artist to becoming a recognized figure in Spanish plastic creation?
Javier Velasco: I want to understand that the term “emerging” is applied to someone who is starting their journey in plastic creation. This matter should be independent of the age of whom we consider emerging, since there are creatives who start their career past the age we normally consider emerging. Having clarified this point, and in regard to my specific case, I studied Fine Arts and from the time I was studying at the Faculty, I felt that I should have my own production and start to elaborate a discourse while investigating different disciplines. From that point of view, it can be said that I was indeed an emerging artist during a period of my development as an artist. In that last decade of the past century, the influences were many and we were beginning to see other disciplines in the Spanish art scene that were not the usual ones we had learned at the University. I became interested in performance, action and commitment art, installations, and object interventions, etc. Let’s say that after this process, one comes to have their own creative approach, in discursive, thematic, and even technical aspects.
CalleArte: What did it mean for you to participate in the Venice Biennale in 2001 and how did that experience influence your artistic career?
Javier Velasco: By the time I participated as a guest alongside a group of Spanish artists at the Venice Biennale, I already had quite an extensive career as an artist and recognition from a good part of the critics. It’s true that as a showcase, it was an important springboard for my artistic career, not only because of what the Venice Biennale represents but also due to its duration. On that occasion, my discourse was quite well-structured, and the installation I presented, of enormous dimensions, was a titanic work of effort and configuration. It involved creating a set of more than 3000 glass drops, melted on-site, and suspending them from the ceiling of the Arsenale in Giudecca. The spectacle was guaranteed once the work was finished as it was an ephemeral piece (something not very common at that time) and very complex to elaborate, which would end with its own destruction. The poetry it radiated and the magic of the material captivated those who contemplated it, as it wasn’t a work that overwhelmed the viewer but had to be discovered by looking up and contemplating that rain frozen in time and space.
CalleArte: Could you share a bit about your creative process? Where do you get the inspiration for your works?
Javier Velasco: I am an artist in transition between the analog and the digital, and that puts me in a complex borderline. When I began my creative journey, the internet was not even remotely what we know now. Everything was very rudimentary, and we could barely be amazed by the use of Photoshop, so you can imagine how we were in the world of information. I’m telling you this because I’m from a generation that created its foundation from readings about art, both contemporary and classical. Everything was susceptible to being studied. Books, art magazines, newspapers with their supplements, and catalogs were our old internet. We weren’t as hyper-informed or hyper-connected as we are today. If you traveled, you had the opportunity to see and bring back a couple of catalogs, but if you couldn’t, then you were relegated to your own universe. I drew from these sources and from them developed different themes while researching the materials that interested me for my work. Mercury chrome and methylene blue appeared, and I studied them until I mastered them, materials with which I painted many immense works. Later, I included what became one of the most distinctive features of my work, which was the use of Murano glass, with which I started making glass drops that could reach meters and meters in length. Therefore, I could summarize that my process from that time was study and analysis in order to create. It wasn’t something different from others, really.
CalleArte: How has your participation in the ARCO fair impacted your career and the perception of your work within the artistic field?
Javier Velasco: ARCO is an international art fair, and the truth is that, like all fairs, over time it has become a rather stereotyped and political showcase of what curators and organizers consider should be shown. In recent years, I don’t find works that are really exciting or motivating for other artists. Or very few. For me, ARCO was a great showcase because in the years when I participated in it as an artist, sometimes even with several galleries at once, it could be said that it was a place to exchange ideas and projects and, of course, let’s not kid ourselves, it was the biggest source of income that we artists could have if the gallery owner’s commercial choice was right for the demand. An art market is just that: a market. Currently, I believe more in the proposals of artists who work on their own impulse, as hard and costly as this may sound, because going to a fair nowadays means having to go with the prevailing discourse and the buyer’s taste.
CalleArte: You have worked with prominent curators, such as Harold Szeemann. How did their opinions and choices influence your artistic trajectory?
Javier Velasco: Harald Szeeman was an endearing person who cared for the artists he discovered and helped them trace the lines of their development. Few people like him knew how to see where there was really someone who could give more of themselves or were simply a product. I remember him with affection and respect. His texts are still the subject of theses and learning. Even today, new points of view can be drawn from his findings.
CalleArte: Throughout your career, is there any particular project or installation that you consider a milestone or that has especially marked you?
Javier Velasco: Sticking to the question, my artistic ensemble “The Seventh Circle”, presented at La Gallera space in the city of Valencia in 2012, in which, based on the themes treated by Dante in his “Divine Comedy”, I presented a whole configuration, let’s say scenographic, with paintings in mercurochrome and glass installations from the ceiling of the place, could be said to be one of the most important moments of my artistic journey and the one I’m most proud of.
CalleArte: How has your artistic style or approach evolved over the years, and what changes have you noticed in your work?
Javier Velasco: The maturity granted by having gone through private galleries and collective or individual exhibitions with public organizations is a real master’s degree for an artist. When one is immersed in that dynamic, creation is subject to factors that don’t allow the artist to grow too much, and perhaps that’s what has created a rather politicized and boring artistic environment. Now, when I no longer have to prove anything, I like to feel free from conditioning and/or pressures, and delight in what I want, with what I know how to do, which is nothing more than a domesticated ability for creation. I enjoy drawing, for example, silverpoint drawings made with care and to the smallest detail, without having to be “modern”. I like to continue surprising myself with some material that brings me surprises. I no longer consider that I have to make discourses with my work. When I really advocated for certain themes with it, I didn’t do it for trends as I feel has happened in recent years. Rather, now I’m a contemporary hermit who occasionally pokes his head out and lets show something of the many things that interest me, if only so that I don’t end up buried in oblivion.
CalleArte: What is your vision of the current state of contemporary art in Spain and in the world?
Javier Velasco: Contemporary art still interests me, no matter where it comes from. But the capacity for surprise has almost disappeared with the so-called migration of ideas, which is nothing more than the load we put into artists’ hard drives. With just one that contributes something to me, I’m satisfied, although, as I mentioned earlier, I think it’s so difficult to make a living from art nowadays that creation is domesticated and the only ones who really have income are the curators and the multiple intermediaries of the artwork. It seems to be taken for granted that the artist should be content with just making and being able to show the work, and this makes the works extremely poor in material and in how they are shown. These are not good times for Art, I think. I see more interest in the panorama in resurrecting the classics (Picasso, Degas, Van Gogh, etc.) than in contemporary artists. Perhaps we have to wait for my generation to disappear for time to put everything in its place. I don’t know.
CalleArte: What advice would you offer to young artists who are starting their career in the art world?
Javier Velasco: I don’t think advice can be given in a generic way for all artists since each creator has their own circumstances and reality to deal with and live with. An artist has to live and then create. It’s important to learn and devour everything you can and then make your own reinterpretation and occupy your own angle as a creator. Be sincere and don’t blindly obey those who appropriate the work of young artists (Curators, politicians, gallery owners, etc.). It’s complicated, I know, but it’s the only way to not be just another one and do what a thousand others do from different perspectives. Just as we don’t like to see the same movie no matter which cinema we go to, it’s the same with contemporary art and exhibitions, because the main thing is that we can always contemplate and be moved by, if possible, new and daring artistic works.
CalleArte: What are your upcoming projects or artistic goals that you’d like to share with us?
Javier Velasco: At this point in my career, you could say that I’m filling in gaps or what I consider to be voids in my conception of life and therefore of art. I need to travel constantly and nourish myself with unknown cultures and formulas, and perhaps something interesting can come out of that. My aspirations at the moment are in my workshop and in my ability to travel, now without rush, but with the same curiosity that led me to dedicate my life to art.
CalleArte: With this interview, CalleArte has the privilege of bringing to its audience the essence of an extraordinary creator, Javier Velasco. Through his words, we have traveled the paths of his artistic journey, marked by constant exploration, innovation, and a deep sensitivity towards materials and ideas. From the majestic glass drops suspended at the Venice Biennale to the intimate pieces that now emerge from his workshop, Velasco shows us that art is not just a craft, but a commitment to emotion, reflection, and humanity.
Throughout this conversation, we have accompanied his reflections with thumbnails of some of his most emblematic works. These pieces, although represented in small format, reflect the greatness of his talent and the depth of his artistic vision. If any of these thumbnails have caught your attention, we invite you to learn more about his work by visiting his Instagram profile, where you can explore his creative universe more completely.
Contemporary art, in Velasco’s words, faces challenging times. However, his voice resonates as a reminder that the value of art lies in its ability to move, surprise, and connect. His message for new generations of artists leaves us with a valuable lesson: to be true to oneself, explore without fear, and find in authenticity the true path to leave a mark. Javier Velasco represents an essential figure in the current artistic landscape. His past, present, and future projects inspire us to value art not only as a cultural product but as a transformative experience that enriches our existence.
From his first steps in the art world, Velasco stood out as a passionate and visionary creator, demonstrating a natural talent that quickly led him to establish himself as a key figure in contemporary visual arts.
From CalleArte, we deeply thank Javier Velasco for sharing his story, his reflections, and his vision. We invite our audience to continue discovering the talent and legacy of this exceptional artist, as well as to explore new horizons of contemporary art on our platforms. Let’s continue celebrating art, promoting creators, and building together a space where creativity is the true protagonist.
Until next time!
