Madrid,
Until next Sunday, March 8, ARCOmadrid celebrates its 45th edition in pavilions 7 and 9 of IFEMA under the direction of Maribel López. Its axis this time has not been a geography, but a concept, that of the future, diffuse by necessity and that will give rise to debates: most galleries have opted for consolidated names and generally solid proposals, which will please those who are already back from risks that did not find their way, and not so much those who seek surprise.
This 45th anniversary will also be remembered for the galleries’ constant demand for a reduced cultural VAT that equates their working conditions with those of our surrounding countries: in Spain this tax is applied at 21%, compared to percentages that range between 5 and 8% in France, Italy, Germany or Portugal. The panorama places Spanish galleries at a clear disadvantage, hence their recent strike for a week and the lockdowns of artists and gallery owners in several museums, for the moment without results due to the lack of agreement between the Ministries of Culture and Finance. ARCO was announced as the opportunity to make that pressure more visible, and public; and that figure of 21% as a true scandal.
211 galleries from thirty countries are participating in the event, the vast majority (175) within its General Program. The curated sections are ARCO2045: the future, for nowto which seventeen rooms have been added; the consolidated Opening. New galleriesin which nineteen participate; and Profiles | Latin American artwith a dozen.
A third of the centers are of Spanish origin and, of the rest, another third correspond to Latin American galleries, mostly Brazilian and Argentine: ARCO does not want to lose its role as a bridge between the galleries of these countries and Europe.
Among the established Spanish galleries that repeat in the exhibition we can mention 1 Mira Madrid / 2 Mira Archiv, which dedicates a special project to Esther Ferrer and her performative work; Alarcón Criado, which displays works by some of the young Spanish artists in evident growth, such as Alegría y Piñero, Cristina Mejías, Ira Lombardía, Mercedes Pimiento or Belén Rodríguez; Elba Benítez, where the Spanish representative at the next Venice Biennale, Oriol Vilanova, exhibits; Elvira González, whose well-kept stand features vibrant pieces by Soto and Uslé; Leandro Navarro, where we will see beautiful sculptures and drawings by Maillol; Prats Nogueras Blanchard, from whose walls Helena Almeida seduces us; T20, where Sonia Navarro’s textiles will meet us, also in the space of ABC Cultural in dialogue with those of Aurèlia Muñoz; o Travesía Cuatro, where Teresa Solar’s sculptures suggest bodily organs. Río & Meñaka and Memoria premiere at ARCO, while Blue Velvet and Fermay make the jump to the General Program after passing through the section Opening. New galleries.
Among the international galleries, we can mention the entry into the fair of Carlos/Ishikawa, Green Art, Lia Rumma, Loevenbruck or Zander, and the return of Casa Triângulo, Barbara Thumm, Luisa Strina, Bernier/Eliades, Casas Riegner, Dépendance, Massimo Minini and Francesca Minini, Plan B, Luciana Brito or Raquel Arnaud. Other returning faithful are Fortes D’ Aloia & Gabriel, Vistamare, Esther Schipper, Jocelyn Wolff, Lelong, Meyer Riegger, neugerriemschneider, Ruth Benzacar, Peter Kilchmann, Thaddaeus Ropac or Thomas Schulte.
Regarding the curated sections, ARCO2045: the future, for now It is structured in two spaces within the fair, with José Luis Blondet and Magali Arriola as curators. They host Commonwealth and Council, with Patricia Fernández; David Nolan and Marc Selwyn Fine Arts, with Rodolfo Abularach; François Ghebaly, with Candice Lin; or Pace Gallery, with Paulina Olowska. Also to some rooms that repeat in the General Program, such as Capitain Petzel with Barbara Bloom; Carlier | Gebauer with Nicole Miller; CarrerasMugica with June Crespo; Mor Charpentier with Sylvie Selig; and Proyectos Ultravioleta with Akira Ikezoe.
For its part, Opening. New galleries It brings together venues with less than eight years of experience selected by Rafa Barber and Anissa Touati. These are Callirrhoë, El Chico, Og Gallery, Reservoir, Selebe Yoon and Villa Magdalena, present on previous occasions, along with new additions, such as 4710 Gallery, ADA, gratin, Enhorabuena Espacio, Linse, Method, Spiritvessel or Window Project.
The section Profiles | Latin American ArtFinally, it is headed by curator José Esparza Chong Cuy and brings together centers that exhibit projects by unique artists, such as Gabriel Branco with Galatea; Harold Mendez with Patron and Commonwelth and Council; Paloma Contreras with Pequod Co; and Julia Gallo with Yehudi-Hollander Pappi. All of them premiere at ARCO, while they repeat A Gentil Carioca, with Kelton Campos; Embassy, with Las Nietas de Nonó; Floating Island, with Roberto Jacoby; and NASAL, with Miguel Cintra Robles.
Projects by individual authors also offer forty-one galleries, including those of Adolfo Bimer (ATM), Lucía C. Pino (Prats Nogueras Blanchard), Maia Magdalena Campos (Pons -Barbara Thumm), Roberto Diago (El Apartamento), Antoni Miralda (Senda), Aurèlia Muñoz (José de la Mano), Amparo de la Sota (Galería Alegría), Diana Policarpo (Lehmann), Ugo Rondinoni (Esther Schipper), or Raúl Silva (F2 Gallery + Crisis).
The organization has confirmed the arrival to Madrid of collectors, patrons and members of museums such as the Amis du Center Pompidou, ADIAF and the Jeu de Paume in Paris, the TATE Americas Foundation in New York, the Meadows Museum in Dallas, the MOLAA in Long Beach, the Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain in Geneva, the Kunsthalle in Prague, the Leopold Museum in Vienna, the Young Collectors Circle in Lisbon, the Royal Academy and Spirit Now London, from London; Various Others (Munich); KW and BB (Berlin), the Nationalgalerie in Berlin, the Joan Miró Foundation and the MACBA Foundation or the University of Navarra Museum. And purchases will be confirmed by the Reina Sofía Museum, the Community and City Council of Madrid, the Junta de Andalucía, IVAM, Es Baluard, the María José Jove Foundation Art Center, the Sorigué Foundation or the María Cristina Masaveu Peterson Foundation.
In the coming days we will also inform you of the awards granted: the Lexus Award for Best Stand, the Cervezas Alhambra Arte Emergente, NEWARTaward@ARCO, the ENATE-ARCOmadrid 2026, the Young Talent in Opening, the Engel & Völkers Award, Profiles | Latin American Art, the Pilar Forcada ART Situacions Award, the Acquisición Catapulta, the ARCO Antoni Vila Casas Award, the Catalina D’Anglade, the Emerige-CPGA Award, the Rucandio Collection Award, the Opening Award and the Juana de Aizpuru that went to the Elvira González gallery.
