It is said that the rules for the use of color in art were developed in the 18th century following Newton’s color wheel, that artists have been using paint to convey emotions for more than 600 years, and that the action painting – as a technique of expression – was born more than 30,000 years ago on the walls of caves inhabited by primitive man. Beyond dating the origin of painting in its different variants, the only certainty is that its transformative potential and its ability to excite and generate change was there from the beginning. With this idea I went home a few days ago after visiting the Hortensia Herrero Art Center. The fact is that this is not a chronicle to tell the diversity of styles that can be seen in that space, or the conceptual aspects of modern art. Rather, quite the opposite, it would be a chronicle of everything that may lie behind the painting.
The works of Calder or Kiefer impress, but it is also impressive to see how the painting has been a key piece in a restoration process of more than 5 years in an iconic space in the city, or how this painting has a leading role in a foundation focused on promote sensitivity and knowledge of culture in the Community. For all these reasons, in this case, the inspiration is in the works, but also in going beyond and putting all the effort into making a passion transcend into a social good. I’m not talking about comparisons, but about inspirations, and at this point the size or resources available have nothing to do with it.
I left the art center inspired, but above all motivated. The social potential of art and painting is very clear to me, in fact, giving visibility to artistic expressions is a practice that we also discovered in our company through a contest (Encarna Jiménez), which was born to bet on art. urban and for local talent. And when I talk about motivation, I go far beyond an interest in replicating something similar. Painting motivates and excites. It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about painting your child’s new room, a new house, or restoring a palace located in the heart of Valencia.
The same thing happens to those of us convinced that this is an ideal tool to contribute, in one way or another, to society. The versatility is the same. It doesn’t matter whether we are talking about the paint that an artist uses to paint a painting, or that made by a chemist for an industrial company. To reach the change that painting takes you to, there are no excuses like “we can’t reach that level.” I write this and I remember what I said here a few weeks ago, that you have to get rid of the idea that there are companies and sectors that don’t like being creative or creating a brand. The same thing happens with giving color to the change. In addition to leaving the art center motivated, I left even more convinced of all this colorful inspiring social potential, and more eager than ever to continue using our resources to continue contributing. Now, more than ever, to continue betting on the art of painting change.
