Artist Statement

The 1990s

Manuel Mediavilla was predominantly influenced by the 1990s growing up. In the United Kingdom, a collective of artists known as the YBAs, or Young British Artists, dominated the artistic culture of the decade. They were a loosely affiliated and diverse group, united generally by their age and nationality. A number of the members had attended the Royal College of Art and Goldsmiths in London, and were favoured by Charles Saatchi, the ‘super collector’ of art at the time. The most famous member of the group is arguably Damien Hirst, and other members included Chris Ofili, Tracey Emin, Marc Quinn, Gavin Turk, Sarah Lucas and Sam Taylor-Johnson (née Sam Taylor-Wood). Through their use of shock tactics and sensationalism, the YBAs gained a divisive public image which was further fuelled by their use of throwaway materials, wild lifestyles and an attitude that was at the same time rebellious and entrepreneurial. The group dominated the British art scene in the 1990s and their group show ‘Sensation’ is now viewed as legendary. The art world was influenced by a number of trends throughout the decade, the controversial, hyper-realistic sculptures of Maurizio Cattelan and the sensitive, conceptual work of Felix Gonzalez-Torres characterised the atmosphere of the era.

His Sculptures

The swimmers appear alone or accompanied by other swimmers, and by other elements or animals. Swimmers are almost always represented in an artificial environment relating to the aquatic environment, made up of planes and surfaces subjected to a strict geometric stylization that have a double function: both structural and allusive.

Water symbolizes the space in which to move, it can appear represented or absent but always present. The liquid element is an amorphous, labile matter, whose positive and negative presence is specified in the precise suspension of the movement of figures submerged in pure depth.

The animal is one more being in the artificial context of man. I always incarnate animals outside of their natural environment as if they were humans or as if humans were rather animals. Both are related equally in a silent dialogue.