We’re celebrating the birthday of an artist without limits: Jaume Plensa turns 67

Jaume Plensa will be 67 years old this 23 August. ARTIKA would like to wish a happy birthday to an artist who we have worked on two exclusive projects with: two editions that prove that the work of great artists cannot be separated from their biography.

Words, images and spaces

Jaume Plensa (Barcelona, 1955) calls himself a sculptor, but he has never drawn barriers between disciplines. He has worked in engraving, scenography and drawing; poetry also forms a decisive part of his artistic personality. “My house was full of books when I was a child, and text came before images of works of art or photographs in my visual training. The letter is a metaphor for the human being. It’s like a cell charged with memory”. Plensa is an artist who works with ideas and materials, but also with feelings.

Twenty nine palms, 2007. Stainless steel, 29 elements of variable dimensions. Installation view at IVAM-Institut Valencià d'Art Modern in Valencia, Spain 2007. Umeå University Library Collection, Sweden. Photo Jaume Plensa©.

Jaume Plensa will be 67 years old this 23 August. ARTIKA would like to wish a happy birthday to an artist who we have worked on two exclusive projects with: two editions that prove that the work of great artists cannot be separated from their biography.

Words, images and spaces

Jaume Plensa (Barcelona, 1955) calls himself a sculptor, but he has never drawn barriers between disciplines. He has worked in engraving, scenography and drawing; poetry also forms a decisive part of his artistic personality. “My house was full of books when I was a child, and text came before images of works of art or photographs in my visual training. The letter is a metaphor for the human being. It’s like a cell charged with memory”. Plensa is an artist who works with ideas and materials, but also with feelings.

Left.: Conversation à Nice, 2007, Francia

Right.: Source, 2017, Montreal, Canadá.

In search of beauty

Jaume Plensa’s art is found in public spaces worldwide, from Seoul to Rio de Janeiro. These monumental sculptures create meeting places and blend organically into the landscape. They also build a connection with anyone who comes across them in squares and streets: through their characteristic gesture (closed eyes), the faces of these large-scale sculptures invite reflection and an opportunity to tap into our inner world. “One of the artist's duties is to bring beauty into people’s everyday lives”, he says, which is why each of these sculptures is like an oasis of serenity and aesthetic pleasure.

Left.: Anna, 2015, Klövedal, Sweden

Right.: Nomade, 2010, Antibes, Francia.

Creation and experience

“I’ve always believed that art and life are the same thing”. Plensa reminds us that artistic language need not necessarily speak to far-removed issues, because the most important challenges come out of everyday life. “Let’s not fool ourselves: art is a reflection of the society we live in”. In fact, each of Plensa’s works is framed in the here and now, existing completely only with the spectator’s gaze. “For me, sculpture is the best way to pose a question”.

A future under construction

Jaume Plensa never stops dreaming up new projects. His most recent exhibition, Jaume Plensa. Cada rostro es un lugar (Every Face is a Place), was hosted at the Museum of Modern Art in Céret, France, and includes some of his more recent creations. He is one of Spain’s most internationally acclaimed artists, and demand for his sculptures for public spaces continues to grow.

He has received numerous awards, including the Premi Nacional d'Arts Plàstiques de la Generalitat (National Fine Arts Award from the Government of Catalonia) (1997), the Premio Nacional de Artes Plásticas (National Award for Visual Arts) (2012) and the Medalla de Oro al Mérito en las Bellas Artes (Gold Medal for Merit in Fine Arts) (2021), as well as being made Doctor Honoris Causa from the UAB. However, Plensa is always forward-looking: which will be the next space his creativity will transform?

Jaume Plensa receives the Velázquez Prize for Plastic Arts 2013 from Queen Letizia. © Borja Photographers.

Jaume Plensa and ARTIKA

We’ve had the honour of working with Plensa on two unique works. The first was 58, a sculpture created exclusively for ARTIKA which is now sold out.

The second was Jaume Plensa 61, an art book that lets us into the secret on how he creates his art. Plensa defines it as “the portrait of a creative will”.

Both editions are intimately linked to their author’s life, the titles referring to Jaume Plensa’s age when he started each project.

At ARTIKA, we’d like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to an artist who is celebrating his 67th birthday in the prime of his creative career.