Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2024
Hiatus (red series)

“Over the past year, the planet has been subjected to a great deal of noise, generating a persistent sense of discomfort and unease that lingers to this day. Finding moments of silence has been quite a challenge. The red paintings mark a pause in my ‘Silent Noise’ series. I perceive red as a strident and noisy color, one that I do not enjoy interacting with. Precisely for this reason, it was chosen for this series—I wanted to physically experience the noise and discomfort during the production of the artwork, reflecting the troublesome experiences that our planet and some of its beings endure. Through a visual impact, I try to create some interior silence for the viewer, which could lead to a time to reflect and rediscover the value of silence amidst a deafening world.” –Esther

Esther Miquel studio view.

Two black and transparent paintings by Esther Miquel are hanging on a white wall in Fran Reus Gallery booth at Untitled Art Fair of Miami Beach 2023

2023
Untitled. Miami Beach Art Fair

Silence is the common denominator in Esther Miquel's artistic practice. On this occasion, the exhibited works allude to silence through the recurrent presence of ice axes, which have become the artist's signature, as well as the choice of materials used in the pieces. They are remarkable for their juxtaposition, much like the interplay between noise and silence, as one cannot exist without the other. On one hand, we encounter the delicacy and transparency of fine black gauze, accentuating the concept of silence and evoking a sensation of levitation. On the other hand, there's the robust aluminum frame employed in the ice axes, while, upon closer inspection, metallic staples are placed at the sides of the work, resembling firm steps in the snow with a rudimentary appearance that perfectly blends with the minimal expressivity and abstract approach of the compositions.

Installation view. Image courtesy of Galería Fran Reus.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2023
SWAB. Barcelona Art Fair.
Installation view. All images courtesy of Galería Fran Reus. Photo: Anna Huix.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2023
Silent Noise

“Silent noise” is a contradictory expression that refers to the perception of noise or activity in an environment that appears to be silent. Although the term “noise” is usually associated with loud, audible sounds, in this case, it is used to describe something that cannot be heard conventionally, but still has a perceptible impact or presence. It can refer to disturbances or hidden elements that create a sense of unease or activity in a quiet environment. It is a way of conveying the idea that something is going on in silence, but that it is still relevant or significant.

The exhibition is made up of seven works, five of which are predominantly white and two of which are set against a
black background, creating an atmosphere conducive to introspection. In each painting, the gestural interventions are minimal, applied from intuition. Each work captures the idea of a hidden activity or noise that occurs in an apparently silent environment - the mind - but it is also presented as an opportunity to practice observation and access an artwork in a totally direct way and without prior judgment.

Miquel introduces us into her own world, where silence is a path to calm, stillness and tranquility. It is also presented as a non-verbal communication, which transmits powerful emotions such as sadness, respect, indifference and secrecy. In short, it is the silence that allows us to connect with the vertical dimension and disengage from the mind to access the present moment. There is only the now and it is in this moment that the work is created, without previous sketches, only with an idea and silence.

Installation view. All images courtesy of Galería Fran Reus. Photo: Grimalt de Blanch.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2023
Panorama #6

Panorama #6 is the resulting group show from the sixth edition of Panorama open call. Aimed to discover new voices on the national and international art scene, Panorama acts as a bridge for the introduction, development and consolidation of young artists with quality proposals. The purpose is to offer an exhibition space to emerging artists, or not so emerging, to give them visibility, making their works known, putting them on the market and giving them the opportunity to come into contact with the gallery world through a group exhibition.

Installation view. All images courtesy of Galería Fran Reus. Photo: Grimalt de Blanch.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2022
Pon el Ceerre al lado de un Miquel

In this show, Esther Miquel and Xavi Ceerre present recent works in a pictorial contrapposto of sorts. They have in common not only their friendship and their common belonging to a generation but also shared interests and a formal approach to painting. From calligraphy and symbolism, the painter’s gesture becomes almost readable as writing, or a phonetic note, one that while being unique resonates in their meeting.

In Xavi’s work, his past as an urban artist has transformed his brushstroke into a shadow of the letters that used to populate public spaces. Those successive coats now act as an accumulation of voices in the same pictorial field. Esther’s works are oriented towards meditation and a geological space, creating graphic signs that remind us of brackets. Silent spaces that suspend meaning yet suggest an unfolding of its own making.

Both artists research the materiality of painting as an essential part of their practice.

Esther’s interest in the usually hidden internal architecture of a painting as a tridimensional object, reveals with its veils the stretcher as a formal element of her canvases. This is also achieved by a restrained use of color to create a sense of quiet self-reflection. In Xavi’s practice, the painter’s gestures and pentimenti are reunited on the surface mirroring each other. By using radiant and fluorescent colors the artist’s brushwork signature leaves a trace that echoes the industrial space that was, and now remains only as a memory.

Their shared interest in the surface and materiality of painting is by chance reflected also in the specificity of the format. A specific size that submerges the body of the viewer, engaging him with a bodily relation with paint, in stark opposition to the smaller formats that generally act more like a window or vista.

Pon el Ceerre al lado de un Miquel is the merging of those distinct voices in a physical dialogue for the viewer to explore.

Installation view. Groc Projects. Photo: Roberto Ruiz. Text: Guille Caivano.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2022
Kara Kitap

The Court presents its sixth appointment KARA KITAP (from the Turkish The Black Book) in the new space Ti Studio in Roseto Degli Abruzzi.

The exhibition project, inspired by the work of the Nobel Prize for Literature Orhan Pamuk and resumed in several moments during the pandemic period, was born from the collaboration between the two platforms Abstracte and The Court which together curated the group show, inviting to be part and confronting the artists: Joshua Evan (US), Arjan Janssen (NL), Riki Mijling (NL), Esther Miquel (ES), Peter Mohall (NO), Maurizio Vicerè (IT), Jan Willem van Welzenis (NL) and Josef Zekoff (AT).

The absolute protagonist is black, interpreted through the production of peculiar visions, sometimes physical and sometimes more introspective. Black, like white for the rest, is at the extreme of the a-chromatic scale within which it is possible to find further gradations of shades, more and more infinitesimal that make the path dark at times impenetrable, suggesting an intermittent journey in and out of the light.

The exhibition layout, rational in the choice of maintaining the same distances between the works on display, translates into a white box made of black windows that overlook evocative horizons. Each work exists in its absoluteness and at the same time in harmony with the others. Expressive means such as painting, sign, photography, sculpture up to more recent reproduction techniques, coexist in the same environment representing thresholds of unexplored worlds, lysergic visions, visual alterities or more appropriately leaps into the void.

Installation view. All images courtesy of Abstracte / The Court. Photo: Pierluigi Fabrizio.

Esther Miquel

2024
Hiatus (red series)

“Over the past year, the planet has been subjected to a great deal of noise, generating a persistent sense of discomfort and unease that lingers to this day. Finding moments of silence has been quite a challenge. The red paintings mark a pause in my ‘Silent Noise’ series. I perceive red as a strident and noisy color, one that I do not enjoy interacting with. Precisely for this reason, it was chosen for this series—I wanted to physically experience the noise and discomfort during the production of the artwork, reflecting the troublesome experiences that our planet and some of its beings endure. Through a visual impact, I try to create some interior silence for the viewer, which could lead to a time to reflect and rediscover the value of silence amidst a deafening world.” –Esther

Esther Miquel studio view.

Two black and transparent paintings by Esther Miquel are hanging on a white wall in Fran Reus Gallery booth at Untitled Art Fair of Miami Beach 2023

2023
Untitled. Miami Beach Art Fair

Silence is the common denominator in Esther Miquel's artistic practice. On this occasion, the exhibited works allude to silence through the recurrent presence of ice axes, which have become the artist's signature, as well as the choice of materials used in the pieces. They are remarkable for their juxtaposition, much like the interplay between noise and silence, as one cannot exist without the other. On one hand, we encounter the delicacy and transparency of fine black gauze, accentuating the concept of silence and evoking a sensation of levitation. On the other hand, there's the robust aluminum frame employed in the ice axes, while, upon closer inspection, metallic staples are placed at the sides of the work, resembling firm steps in the snow with a rudimentary appearance that perfectly blends with the minimal expressivity and abstract approach of the compositions.

Installation view. Image courtesy of Galería Fran Reus.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2023
SWAB. Barcelona Art Fair.
Installation view. All images courtesy of Galería Fran Reus. Photo: Anna Huix.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2023
Silent Noise

“Silent noise” is a contradictory expression that refers to the perception of noise or activity in an environment that appears to be silent. Although the term “noise” is usually associated with loud, audible sounds, in this case, it is used to describe something that cannot be heard conventionally, but still has a perceptible impact or presence. It can refer to disturbances or hidden elements that create a sense of unease or activity in a quiet environment. It is a way of conveying the idea that something is going on in silence, but that it is still relevant or significant.

The exhibition is made up of seven works, five of which are predominantly white and two of which are set against a
black background, creating an atmosphere conducive to introspection. In each painting, the gestural interventions are minimal, applied from intuition. Each work captures the idea of a hidden activity or noise that occurs in an apparently silent environment - the mind - but it is also presented as an opportunity to practice observation and access an artwork in a totally direct way and without prior judgment.

Miquel introduces us into her own world, where silence is a path to calm, stillness and tranquility. It is also presented as a non-verbal communication, which transmits powerful emotions such as sadness, respect, indifference and secrecy. In short, it is the silence that allows us to connect with the vertical dimension and disengage from the mind to access the present moment. There is only the now and it is in this moment that the work is created, without previous sketches, only with an idea and silence.

Installation view. All images courtesy of Galería Fran Reus. Photo: Grimalt de Blanch.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2023
Panorama #6

Panorama #6 is the resulting group show from the sixth edition of Panorama open call. Aimed to discover new voices on the national and international art scene, Panorama acts as a bridge for the introduction, development and consolidation of young artists with quality proposals. The purpose is to offer an exhibition space to emerging artists, or not so emerging, to give them visibility, making their works known, putting them on the market and giving them the opportunity to come into contact with the gallery world through a group exhibition.

Installation view. All images courtesy of Galería Fran Reus. Photo: Grimalt de Blanch.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2022
Pon el Ceerre al lado de un Miquel

In this show, Esther Miquel and Xavi Ceerre present recent works in a pictorial contrapposto of sorts. They have in common not only their friendship and their common belonging to a generation but also shared interests and a formal approach to painting. From calligraphy and symbolism, the painter’s gesture becomes almost readable as writing, or a phonetic note, one that while being unique resonates in their meeting.

In Xavi’s work, his past as an urban artist has transformed his brushstroke into a shadow of the letters that used to populate public spaces. Those successive coats now act as an accumulation of voices in the same pictorial field. Esther’s works are oriented towards meditation and a geological space, creating graphic signs that remind us of brackets. Silent spaces that suspend meaning yet suggest an unfolding of its own making.

Both artists research the materiality of painting as an essential part of their practice.

Esther’s interest in the usually hidden internal architecture of a painting as a tridimensional object, reveals with its veils the stretcher as a formal element of her canvases. This is also achieved by a restrained use of color to create a sense of quiet self-reflection. In Xavi’s practice, the painter’s gestures and pentimenti are reunited on the surface mirroring each other. By using radiant and fluorescent colors the artist’s brushwork signature leaves a trace that echoes the industrial space that was, and now remains only as a memory.

Their shared interest in the surface and materiality of painting is by chance reflected also in the specificity of the format. A specific size that submerges the body of the viewer, engaging him with a bodily relation with paint, in stark opposition to the smaller formats that generally act more like a window or vista.

Pon el Ceerre al lado de un Miquel is the merging of those distinct voices in a physical dialogue for the viewer to explore.

Installation view. Groc Projects. Photo: Roberto Ruiz. Text: Guille Caivano.

Esther Miquel
Esther Miquel

2022
Kara Kitap

The Court presents its sixth appointment KARA KITAP (from the Turkish The Black Book) in the new space Ti Studio in Roseto Degli Abruzzi.

The exhibition project, inspired by the work of the Nobel Prize for Literature Orhan Pamuk and resumed in several moments during the pandemic period, was born from the collaboration between the two platforms Abstracte and The Court which together curated the group show, inviting to be part and confronting the artists: Joshua Evan (US), Arjan Janssen (NL), Riki Mijling (NL), Esther Miquel (ES), Peter Mohall (NO), Maurizio Vicerè (IT), Jan Willem van Welzenis (NL) and Josef Zekoff (AT).

The absolute protagonist is black, interpreted through the production of peculiar visions, sometimes physical and sometimes more introspective. Black, like white for the rest, is at the extreme of the a-chromatic scale within which it is possible to find further gradations of shades, more and more infinitesimal that make the path dark at times impenetrable, suggesting an intermittent journey in and out of the light.

The exhibition layout, rational in the choice of maintaining the same distances between the works on display, translates into a white box made of black windows that overlook evocative horizons. Each work exists in its absoluteness and at the same time in harmony with the others. Expressive means such as painting, sign, photography, sculpture up to more recent reproduction techniques, coexist in the same environment representing thresholds of unexplored worlds, lysergic visions, visual alterities or more appropriately leaps into the void.

Installation view. All images courtesy of Abstracte / The Court. Photo: Pierluigi Fabrizio.