Jesús Rodríguez, director of Evolucionarte: “I believe that the space at Palau Martorell was waiting for us”
Since the beginning of the year, number 11 Ample Street has brought life to Palau Martorell, a new multipurpose space that aims to complement the rich cultural fabric that already exists in Barcelona with major art exhibitions from international collections.
Today we wanted to chat with one of the partners, Jesús Rodríguez, to find out how the project has managed to fill the neoclassical building, which in 1886 housed the Old Mercantile Credit Society, with beauty, thanks to his personal vision of the art world.
Because this Segovian by birth is a renowned cultural producer, who, in addition to acting as a coordinator and manager, has the ability to transform spaces, to give them a name, as he has done with the Palau Martorell, and turn them into vessels for great works, creating exhibitions that promote dialogue between the container and the content.
Currently, Jesús Rodríguez manages Evolucionarte, the Gaviria Palace in Madrid, Palau Martorell in Barcelona, coordinates other international locations, and during all this time has promoted various exhibitions such as Picasso-Goya, Tamara de Lempicka, Botero, Chagall, Brueghel, Monet, Miró, Dalí… among many others.
To talk about his beginnings in the art world, Jesús goes back to the year 2000 when he met the Italian actress and model Lucía Bosé: "We were managing one of the private collections that had works by Pablo Picasso. It was a tribute to the bull and compiled a series of memories from the relationship between Luis Miguel Dominguín and the Spanish painter and sculptor. As a result of the itinerancy of this type of exhibitions, my journey through major shows began, connecting with different collections, both national and international, and the development of these types of installations in specific spaces".
At that moment Evolucionarte was born, the result of the merger of a team of international companies with a common goal: to plan, design, and fully execute cultural projects linked to institutions, foundations, museums, and alternative spaces, thus promoting art in its broadest sense.
Since then, he has been able to observe how the art world remains vibrant and constantly transforms, giving rise to new and renewed concepts of exhibition: "I believe that the trend in the world of major exhibitions will soon adopt a hybrid model, where original art will be mixed with digital to offer new experiences to visitors. Currently, we are developing the exhibition project for the great Monet exhibition in Madrid, which will showcase the major works from the Marmottan Museum in Paris and will also include sensory rooms within the exhibition tour".
Jesús Rodríguez has a large number of successful exhibitions under his belt and is very clear about what his greatest achievements and successes are: "For me, the greatest professional achievement is, above all, to establish a dialogue between the space and the work you receive. I've had great exhibitions and one that for me has been frankly a success on a personal level is Tamara de Lempicka in Madrid, which we hope to repeat. It was an exhibition with about 50 international loans, because Tamara de Lempicka's work is quite scattered across different museums, foundations, and private collections. It was a great effort and the reward was an excellent exhibition".
Exhibitions that are often itinerant and take place in different settings present challenges, but also rewards: "The itinerancy of exhibitions requires a great deal of control that is unknown to the general public, because in order to host these kinds of displays, whether they are itinerant or not, the venue must have robust security guarantees and resources that are available to major museums and cultural institutions".
After more than 20 years in the art world, the director of Evolucionarte is very clear about his message for those who are starting in collecting: "Above all, I recommend that they be guided by their emotions and not by the market. Because what I've realized at the last fairs I've visited is that the commercial aspect takes precedence over the sentimental aspect or the feeling with a work. It's important that the person who wants to start a true collection really feels it and is not guided by the market".
When we asked how they came to know the Núñez i Navarro building, located on Ample Street, 11, they told us that "one day, while taking a walk through the Gothic Quarter, I arrived at the Mercè Square and saw the facade of the Palau Martorell, which is the naming we have given to the building. I requested a visit and fell in love with the building and its architecture".
And Barcelona's response to this new space could not have been better: “Barcelona is such a cosmopolitan city with so much potential that we owe it to our local audience, and we have been surprised by the great response we have received from those visitors”.
As Jesús Rodríguez explains to us, having local collaborators has been key to the great success of the launch of Palau Martorell: “Personally, at the management level of the space, I not only carry this project but having partners like J. Félix Bentz, president of the Reial Cercle Artístic de Barcelona, and Stoneweg Places & Experiences has been crucial for the success of this great project”.
A space for which the Núñez i Navarro Group, after careful restoration, also envisioned special plans that, once again, would add value to the city of Barcelona: "I believe that one must have a special sensitivity to host these types of cultural activities. And I am aware that the property had different proposals for this space, but they considered them not suitable. When they were presented with the work we had done in other spaces, they opted to understand that we should be here".
It seems that the meeting between space and the cultural manager was only a matter of time, as if both were predestined to come together to give life to a project full of beauty with the capacity to transform both inside and out: "I believe that the space was waiting for us. From our point of view, these kinds of palaces require care and a special sensitivity that dignifies them. From a heritage perspective, it's very interesting to understand that the type of activity we carry out allows us to enhance their value and benefits the property itself. These kinds of spaces need us to arrive to valorize their content and container, I think that's when the perfect dialogue happens, especially because of the care we give it. We really must cherish every detail to be able to host these kinds of exhibitions that, on many occasions, have a considerable value, much greater than that of the property itself".
La rehabilitación del edificio, llevada a cabo por el equipo de Núñez i Navarro entre los años 2016-2019 preparaba el escenario perfecto para dar cabida a este proyecto cultural que hoy ya ha comenzado a transmutar su propio entorno: “La primera vez que nos entregaron las llaves vimos que el tejido que rodeaba al Palacio no era el más adecuado, pero, esto ya nos ha ocurrido anteriormente en otros espacios que gestionamos. Sabemos que a través de nuestra actividad ese tejido que creemos no es el más adecuado tiende a moverse a otras zonas. Nuestro tipo de actividad está controlada y de algún modo transforma la zona”.
And he adds: “A large part of the local audience that comes to visit tells us that they were not aware of it, that they have not visited it in person, or do not remember it. The Palau Martorell is a must-see. This is not a 5000 m² space where you get saturated with art because we select the premium works. For us, quality takes precedence over quantity”.
Jesus travels a lot and shares with us how he gets to know the various cities that now host his projects: “I do fieldwork, which means I get up at 8 in the morning and put on some sneakers. Then I walk around the city and get a feel for how it functions, where the local people go, where the tourists move, and once I understand that there are spaces that could be available, we make a proposal of what our activity is, our projects, and how we take care of the heritage. In this way, generally, the owners tend to be more open”.
For those passionate about art wishing to visit Barcelona, it is recommended: “Barcelona is such a rich city that I believe it's essential to focus on four spaces, four jewels or monuments, and not to go beyond that, because you don't enjoy it the same way when you want to see Barcelona in one day, it's impossible. It's crucial to concentrate on 2 or 3 elements of interest and with that, the visit and Barcelona itself take on another perspective”.
And among the great cultural offerings that the City of Barcelona provides, he is most fond of the Casa Batlló, “because frankly, it's a gem and the Gothic Quarter: “I love to wander its streets”.
Before leaving, Jesus reveals to us that soon the Palau Martorell will host a very comprehensive exhibition of the French painter, Marc Chagall: "It is a very poetic exhibition that will consist of 28 oil paintings, drawings, gouaches...". In the meantime, he invites us to visit the current exhibition which can be found on their website and to sign up for their excellent guided tours.
Without a doubt, it leaves us wanting more and certain that, very soon, Barcelona will enjoy a new encounter with international art held in a unique space, which we do not intend to miss.
