Twenty artists have now contributed their work to the collection belonging to the Barcelona Fire Service. A complete series of these works was given to the Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona last year.
An initiative was started in 2002 to recognise and thank the city’s firefighters for their dedication, spirit of service and commitment to the profession. The project consisted of giving a unique and exclusive lithograph to all members at Christmas, numbered and signed by the artist.
The collection is on display at the Espai Bombers and can also be found on the website for the Barcelona Fire Service.
Jaume Plensa
Jaume Plensa, author of this year’s piece, is one of the most internationally renowned sculptors in the country. He is known around the world for his zoomorphic sculptures made up of letters and names in various materials such as cast iron, polyester, fibreglass, alabaster and wood, in combinations with multimedia elements (lights and sounds).
His work conveys the relationship between the human figure and abstraction, highlighting the power of the pairings light/compact, light/darkness, silence/sound, spirit/material and life/death.
The artist has work on display in galleries in Paris, Chicago and New York, and periodically in different museums and galleries in Europe, Asia and the USA. He also exhibits work in public spaces in major cities around the world. One of his most outstanding works is in Chicago (Crown Fountain), and the largest is in New Jersey (Water’s Soul).
In graphic arts, two retrospective exhibitions in France and Belgium stand out, as does his collaboration with La Fura dels Baus in theatre and opera projects. He is also the author of the poster for La Mercè 2012. He has lived in England as a guest of the Henry Moore Institute and has taught sculpture at the National School of Fine Arts in Paris and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he was made an honorary professor in 2005.
In recognition of his work, in 2013 he received the Premio Velázquez de Artes Plásticas, one of many awards gained at a national and international level. In 2015, he was awarded the Global Fine Art Award in Miami, for his participation in the Venice Biennale di Venezia of the same year.