Guillem Ramos-Poqu Recent Work Exhibition

19th June - 6th July 2014. Private View Thursday 19th June 7.30pm
Royal Artistic Circle of Barcelona. c. Arcs 5, 08002 Barcelona
Exhibition oppenign hours: Monday to Sunday 10am - 8pm

Guillem Ramos-Poqu Obra recent Exposici
19 de juny - 6 de juliol 2014. Inauguraci el dijous 19 de juny 19.30h
Reial Cercle Artistic de Barcelona. c. Arcs 5, 08002 Barcelona
Horari d'exposici de dilluns a diumenge 10h - 20h

Comissariada per Joan Abell Juanpere i Laura Plana Gracia
Curated by Joan Abell Juanpere i Laura Plana Gracia

Guillem Ramos-Poqu 2014 www.ramos-poqui.com
www.ramos-poqui.com/exhibitionbarcelona2014



Guillem-Ramos Poqu: Exhibition of Recent Work at The Royal Artistic Circle of Barcelona

The Royal Artistic Circle of Barcelona has the pleasure of exhibiting a recent body of work by
Catalan artist Guillem-Ramos Poqui.
Guillem Ramos-Poqu grew up in Barcelona where he studied painting at the city's School of Fine
Art. During the 60s where he was a leading figure in the Catalan Conceptual and Povera avant-
garde. After being awarded several art fellowships that took him to Paris and New York, he
settled in London in 1968 where he studied at the Slade and the Royal College of Art. In 1995 he
received his Ph.D. in Fine Art from the University of Barcelona. He was Head of Fine Art at
Kensington and Chelsea College (1990-2004) and Lecturer in Advanced Painting at Morley
College (2004-2012). He has exhibited extensively in London and abroad.
Through a poetic interplay of visual metaphors, his work articulates a new and important vision in
painting which addresses fundamental issues about the nature of art, reality and perception. His
meditative compositions have a hypnotic visual quality, in part because of their apparent
simplicity and formal purity. Look closer, however, and the surface is teeming with the nervous
energy and interplay of complex textures, materials and mark-making. His current work is a
synthesis and culmination of the formal signs, symbols and themes found throughout his oeuvre.
The use of contrasting techniques such as egg-tempera, encaustic, oils and acrylics achieve a
rich variety of textures, while the use of silver-leaf and mirror fragments contrasts with the subtle
grain of the canvas. Multi-dimensional spaces are juxtaposed in which shapes and images float
freely and interconnect through colour sequences. His painting-collages feature ephemeral
elements (from broken clocks to Old Master reproductions), inviting a variety of interpretations
and readings. At the heart of his work lies a desire to confront and explore contemporary issues
including cultural decline and urban alienation, all the while inviting the magical and the
metaphysical to push through the surface of the canvas.
Josep Flix Bentz. President of the Royal Artistic Circle of Barcelona. 2014
Joan Abell Juanpere. Institutional Relations of the Royal Artistic Circle of Barcelona. 2014
___________________________
Guillem- Ramos Poqu : Exposici d'obra recent al Reial Cercle Artstic de Barcelona

El Reial Cercle Artstic de Barcelona t el plaer de presentar la obra de l'artista catal Guillem
Ramos-Poqu.
Guillem Ramos - Poqu va nixer a Barcelona a on va fer la carrera de Belles Arts. Durant la
dcada de 1960 va ser una figura destacada en la avantguarda catalana del art Conceptual i
Povera. Desprs d'haver estat guardonat amb diverses beques d'art que el van portar a Pars i
Nova York, es va establir a Londres el 1968, on va estudiar a la Slade i al Royal College of Art.
El 1995 va rebre el seu doctorat en Belles Arts per la Universitat de Barcelona. A Londres va ser
Director de Belles Arts a Kensington and Chelsea College (1990-2004) i Professor de Pintura
Avanada al Morley College (2004-2012 ). Ha realitzat nombroses exposicions a Londres i al
estranger .
A travs d'una interacci potica de metfores visuals, la seva obra articula una visi nova i
important en la pintura que aborda qestions fonamentals sobre la naturalesa de l'art , la realitat i
la percepci. Les seves composicions meditatives tenen una qualitat visual hipntica, en part a
rel de la seva aparent simplicitat i puresa formal. Per, mira ms de prop i la superfcie est
plena de l'energia nerviosa de la interacci de textures complexes , materials i traos expressius.
El seu treball actual s una sntesi i culminaci dels signes formals, smbols i temes que es
troben al llarg de la seva obra. L's de contrast de tcniques com la pintura al tremp a l'ou, la
encustica, l'oli i l'acrlic, aconsegueix una rica varietat de textures, mentre que l's de la fulla de
plata i fragments de mirall contrasta amb el gra subtil de la tela. Espais multidimensionals es
juxtaposen a on les formes i les imatges suren lliurement i s'interconnecten a travs de
seqncies de colors. Les seves pintures- collages compten amb elements efmers (des de
rellotges trencats fins reproduccions dels antics mestres), convidant a una varietat
d'interpretacions i lectures. Al centre de la seva obra es troba el desig de confrontar i explorar
temes contemporanis com la decadncia cultural i l'alienaci urbana, alhora que convida a sorgir
lo mgic i metafsic a travs de la superfcie del llen.
Josep Flix Bentz. President del Reial Cercle Artstic de Barcelona. 2014
Joan Abell Juanpere. Relacions Institucionals del Reial Cercle Artstic de Barcelona. 2014



GUILLEM RAMOS-POQU per Laura Plana Gracia

When observing the evolution of the work by Guillem Ramos-Poqu from the 60s to the most recent painting-
collages a compelling paradigm emerges involving the exploration of various issues and changes in our culture
and society strongly linked to the relationship between art, reality and life. This process is reflected i the dynamic
and organic development of his work, from the origins of Conceptual and Art Povera in Catalonia, to the
visionary-poetic aspects of his work during the 80s', and his experimental work with printmaking and digital media
of the 90's. All this culminates in his last paintings and painting-collages where ordinary things take on a magical
and metaphysical meaning.
In 2001, Catalan critic, poet and art historian Jos Corredor-Matheos, wrote: 'There are artists who are
precursors, but who, once their approaches have been established, fall behind - their innovative sources having
burnt out. Relatively few artists remain open to change and know how to take advantage of the new times in
order to launch new initiatives. Amongst the later we find, without doubt, Guillem Ramos-Poqu.' (Introduction to
the catalog 'Guillem Ramos-Poqu . Collages, paintings, assemblages, digital collages. Paris, Barcelona and
London, 1965-2001', Colville Place Gallery Publications, London. Text David Rodway).
In the sixties, whilst living in Paris, funded by the French government, with a studio at the Cit International des
Arts, he was part of group of artists formed by Miralda, Rabascall, Benet Rossell and Jaume Xifra.
His artwork is influenced by personal relationships maintained during the 1960s and 1970s, with artistic
personalities from the world of abstraction such as Mordecai Ardon (M.Bronstein), Director of the Museum of
Modern Art in Jerusalem, the best student of Paul Klee; Georgy Kepes, the founder with Moholy Nagy of the New
Bauhaus Art Institute of Chicago; and Ola Wolpe (Ola Okuniewska) who studied under Johannes Itten in Vienna,
and the Bauhaus with Itten, Klee and Kandinsky. Guillem Ramos-Poqu has a PhD in Painting from the Faculty of
Fine Arts of Barcelona University. He lives in London where he has exhibited since 1968 and has held prominent
positions as the Head of Fine Art of Fine Art Kensington and Chelsea College.
The recent work of Guillem Ramos-Poqu is characterized by small and medium format canvases, produced from
2011. These show painting at an abstract level, showing the dual versatility of art, unmasking form and content
through the mystical transcendence of matter, unfolding and revealing a dual vision of the universe through a
poetic, aesthetic interior movement. Thus, abstract symbolism, geometry and image dialectics, are used to go
beyond form and matter.
In conclusion, I must say that the career of Guillem Ramos-Poqu forms part of the cultural memory of Catalan
avant-garde art. It is of great historical merit, a form of cultural exile in dealing with answers, resulting in the
development of a total work of art, unified and complete.
Laura Plana Gracia. Researcher and Independent Curator
GUILLEM RAMOS-POQU per Laura Plana Gracia

Al observar l'evoluci de l'obra de Guillem Ramos-Poqu dels anys 60 fins a les ms recents pintura-collages, un
convincent paradigma emergeix que explora diverses qestions i canvis en la nostra cultura i societat, fortament
vinculat a la relaci entre l'art, la realitat i la vida. Aquest procs es reflecteix en el desenvolupament dinmic i
orgnic de la seva obra, des dels orgens de l'Art Conceptual i Povera a Catalunya, els aspectes visionaris
potica de la seva obra durant els anys 80 ', i el seu treball experimental amb el gravat i els mitjans digitals de la
dels 90. Tot aix culmina en les seves ltimes pintures i pintures-collages on les coses ordinries adquireixen un
significat mgic o metafsic.
El 2001, el crtic catal, poeta i historiador de l'art Jos Corredor-Matheos, va escriure: "Hi ha artistes precursors
que, un cop imposades les seves propostes, les forces d'innovaci es queden enrere, sn relativament pocs els
que queden oberts als nous temps per imposar noves iniciatives. Entre aquests ltims hi ha, sens dubte, Guillem
Ramos-Poqu." (Introducci al catleg "Guillem Ramos-Poqu. Collages, pintures, assemblatges, collages
digitals. Pars, Barcelona i Londres, 1965-2001, Colville Colloqui Gallery Publications, Londres. Text David
Rodway).
Durant els anys seixanta, 1965, va viure a Pars, guardonat pel el Govern Francs, amb estudi a la Cit
International des Arts, a on tamb estava becat Daniel Argimn, i va formar part del grup d'artistes joves catalans
Miralda, Rabascall, Benet Rossell i Jaume Xifra. La seva obra pictrica est influda per relacions personals que
havia mantingut durant els anys 19060s i 1970s, amb personalitats artstiques del mn de labstracci com
Mordecai Ardon (M.Bronstein), Director del Museu dArt Modern de Jerusalem, millor alumne de Paul Klee;
Georgy Kepes, fundador del New Bauhaus al Art Institute of Chicago, juntament amb Laszlo Moholy Nagy; i Ola
Wolpe (Ola Okuniewska) qui va estudiar amb Johannes Itten a Viena, i a Bauhaus, amb Itten, Klee i Kandinsky.
Guillem Ramos-Poqu s Doctor en Pintura per la Facultat de Belles Arts de la Universitat de Barcelona Sant
Jordi. Viu i exposa a Londres des de 1968. Des de llavors, sha dedicat a la pintura i a les arts amb posicions
prominents com la de Director de Belles Arts del Kensington i Chelsea College. La obra recent de Guillem
Ramos-Poqu es caracteritza per teles de petit i mitj format, realitzades a partir de 2011. Sn obres on segueix
configurant el pla de la pintura en un nivell abstracte, mostrant la doble versatilitat de lart, s a dir
desemmascarant la forma i el contingut en una transcendncia mstica de la matria, recorrent al desvelant, en
correlaci esttica amb un moviment potic interior que intensifica el significat mostrant una doble visi de
lunivers entorn. Aix, simbolisme abstracte, geometria i dialctica de la imatge sn emprats per travessar el
transfons de les formes i la matria que les embolcalla.
Finalment cal dir que la trajectria artstica de Guillem Ramos-Poqu s part de la memria cultural de lart catal
davantguarda . s tamb, un mrit histric, una forma dexili cultural a la recerca de respostes per al
desenvolupament de una obra artstica total, unitria i completa.
Laura Plana Gracia. Recerca cultural i comissria independent d'exposicions. 2014

Guillem Ramos-Poqu CURRICULUM VITAE

Born in Barcelona in 1944. Resident in London since 1968. Website: www.ramos - poqui.com
Exhibitions
1965 Paris Cit Internationale des Arts. 1966: Paris Galerie des Beaux Arts. Barcelona Galera Lleonart.
1967 Ibiza Ivan Spencer Gallery . 1967 New York One Eleven Gallery. 1968 NY The Art of the East Village
1968 London Arts Laboratory. 1968 Cuenca Casa de la Cultura. 1971 Barcelona Aquitania Gallery
1972 Barcelona and Madrid Institute of North American Studies . 1973 London I.C.A. ( Institute of Contemporary Art ). 1981
London Camden Arts Centre . 1982 Paris Grand Palais . 1984 London Chenil Gallery . 1987 London: Blenheim Gallery
1989 London England and Co. Art Gallery. 1989: London: Moller Milne Gallery.
1989 London Tabernacle Gallery. 1992: London Tricycle Art Gallery. 1994 London Queen Elizabeth Hall, South Bank.
1994 Barcelona Sal del Tinell 1995 London Hortensia Art Gallery. 1996: London The Mall Galleries . 1996: London: Eurofair'96 .
1997 Brighton Univ. Art Gallery. 1997 1998 London Colville Place Gallery . 1999 Barcelona Gallery Calligrama .
1999, 2000 , 2001, 2002 London Colville Place Gallery. 2003 London Deluxe Gallery Hoxton Sq. (and 2004)
2007 Belfast Catalyst Arts Gallery. London: Bernard Chauchet Gallery
2008 London Royal Academy Summer Exhibition . London Bernard Chauchet Gallery.
2008 Santander Sala Nao. 2010 London Morley Gallery. 2011 Barcelona Casa Elizalde .
2013 London Tabernacle Gallery. 2014 Barcelona Royal Artistic Circle of Barcelona. 2014 Barcelona Reial Cercle Artistic
Studies
1991-1995 Barcelona PhD in Painting ( cum laude) Faculty of Fine Arts, Barcelona University.
1984-1986 London Masters at the Royal College of Art.
1968-1969 London Slade School of Fine Art, London University, Postgraduate.
1967-1968 New York Pratt Centre Postgraduate (with an Elias Ahuja Art Specialist Fellowship to USA)
1965-1966 Paris Beaux-Arts Postgraduate, Cercle Maillol French Government Fellowship.
1960-1965 Barcelona BA Hons. in Fine Art (Painting) San Jordi School of Fine Art Barcelona
Art Lecturer Positions in London
1971-1990 London: Head of the Fine Art, Essendine Art Centre ILEA (Westminster Institute) W9
1990-2004 London: Head of Fine Art Kensington and Chelsea College, SW10
2004-2012 London: Lecturer in Advanced Painting , Morley College, E1 7HT

___________________________________________________________________________________
Guillem Ramos-Poqu CURRICULUM VITAE
Nascut a Barcelona 1944. Resident a Londres des de 1968 Web : www.ramos-poqui.com
Exposicions
1965 Pars Cit Internationale des Arts. Barcelona Galeria Lleonart. 1966 Paris Galerie des Beaux Arts
1967 Ibiza Ivan Spencer Gallery. 1967: New York One Eleven Gallery . 1968 New York The Art of the East Village
1968 Londres The Arts Laboratory. 1968 Cuenca Casa de la Cultura. 1971 Barcelona: Galeria Aquitnia
1972 Barcelona i Madrid : Institut d'Estudis Nord-americans .1973 Londres I.C.A. (Institut d'Art Contemporani )
1981 Londres Camden Arts Centre. 1982 Pars Grand Palais . 1984 Londres Chenil Gallery. 1987 Londres Blenheim Gallery
1989 Londres Englands & Co Art Gallery . 1989 Londres Milne Moller Gallery . 1989 Londres Tabernacle Gallery.
1992 Londres Tricycle Art Gallery . 1994 Londres Queen Elizabeth Hall, South Bank . 1994 Barcelona Sal del Tinell
1995 Londres Hortensia Art Gallery . 1996 Londres The Mall Galleries. 1996 Londres Eurofair'96 .
1997 Brighton Univ. Art Gallery . 1997, 1998 Londres Colville Place Gallery . 1999 Barcelona Galeria Calligrama . 1999, 2000,
2001, 2002 Londres Colville Place Gallery. 2003 Londres Deluxe Gallery (i 2004).
2007 Belfast Catalyst Arts Gallery . Londres Bernard Chauchet Gallery.
2008 Londres Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. Londres Bernard Chauchet Gallery .2008 Santander Sala Nao
2010 Londres Morley Gallery. 2011 Barcelona Casa Elizalde . 2013 Londres Tabernacle Gallery
2014 Barcelona Reial Cercle Artistic de Barcelona
Estudis
1991-1995 Barcelona Doctorat en Pintura, Facultat de Belles Arts, Universitat de Barcelona.
1984-1986 Londres Masters del Royal College of Art.
1968-1969 Londres Facultat de Belles Arts Slade , postgraduat, Universitat de Londres
1967-1968 Nova York Pratt Centre, Postgraduat (amb Beca d'Especialista d'Art Elias Ahuja per USA)
1965-1966 Paris Beaux -Arts, postgraduat (amb beca del Govern Francs, Cercle Maillol)
1960-1965 Barcelona Llicenciat en Belles Arts (Pintura) Escola de Belles Arts de San Jordi.
Crrecs docents
1971-1990 Londres Director de Belles Arts del Essendine Art Centre ILEA (Westminster Institute) W9
1990-2004 Londres Director de Belles Arts del Kensington and Chelsea College, SW10
2004-2012 Londres Professor de Pintura Avanada, Morley College , SE1 7HT
Biografia catalana succinta
- Alexandre Cirici: 'La nova plstica catalana: Abstracci significativa: Ramos-Poqu' Serra D'Or, maig 1968
- Alexandre Cirici: 'Objectes Pobres, objectes conceptuals: iniciadors'. Serra D'Or, febrer 1972.
- Alexandre Cirici: 'L'art catal contemporani'. Edicions 62 Barcelona 1970, pp. 294, 296, 372.
- Jos Corredor Matheos: 'Histria de l'art catal Vol. IX (La segona meitat del segle XX)' Edicions 62, 1996,
Precursors de del art Povera, manifestacions de lo efmer, els objectes de Ramos-Poqu, pp. 91-92
- Jos Corredor-Matheos: 'Guillem Ramos-Poqu. Collages, Paintings, Assemblages, Digital Photomontages:
Paris Barcelona London-1965-2001 ('Foreward' del catleg , 2001, publicat per la Colville Gallery de Londres).
- Laura Plana 'Guillem Ramos-Poqu: Introducci i revisi cronolgica de la obra: Obra retrospectiva 1965-2009 i
Pintures recents 2010-2013' (catleg digital) 2013