5 Spaniards & Nothing

On 22 November 2012 Ivorypress presented 5 Spaniards & Nothing, Swiss artist Not Vital’s first solo show in Spain. The exhibition reflects the tension between personal experiences and contemporary reality, a dichotomy that is characteristic of Not Vital’s work.

The ‘5 Spaniards’ of the exhibition’s title are five works forged in silver, whose dimensions are directly related to the date of birth of five Spanish artists: Velázquez, Goya, Dalí, Buñuel and Picasso. These sculptures, which evoke small mausoleums, were produced in Niger, West Africa, hammered and welded by hand by members of the Touareg, a semi-nomadic Saharan tribe.

The work of Not Vital (Sent, Switzerland, 1948), is firmly rooted in the Swiss valley of Engadin but has, at the same time, a profound nomadic character. In the last few decades Not Vital has travelled the world, an experience that has made him abandon the idea of working in a fixed studio. He currently lives and works between the USA, Italy, Switzerland and Chile. He has also lived and worked periodically in Niger from 2000 to 2010, attracted by the materials he finds for his work in this African country.