In the field of art galleries in Barcelona, new developments have occurred: Mayoral has expanded its space to open up to contemporary art, and Joan Prats has closed its location in Balmes to merge with Nogueras Blanchard. The new Prats Nogueras Blanchard gallery will open on April 6 in the Trafalgar area (c/ Méndez Núñez, 14) with an exhibition of Muntadas.
The current offer highlights the generous selection of photographs that Mihail Moldoveanu exhibits at Montagut Gallery until May 10, with the title Adopted Vestiges. The Sala Dalmau celebrates its 45th anniversary with an exhibition by Alceu Ribeiro, one of Torres-García's best disciples. And, in the Trafalgar Street area, two painting exhibitions stand out, those by Víctor Silva in Pigment and Campano in Carles Taché, while Senda exhibits drawings by Robert Wilson around his set design for El Messies.
The recent death of Steve Harley (1951-2024) has shown, once again, that we live in a time so distracted by the excess of information that, in cultural terms, it is already on the verge of daze. It will perhaps be that “lost memory of things” that the philosopher Eugenio Trías spoke of. Not only has the Spanish press dedicated little or no space to him, but some critics specializing in pop music have demonstrated that they know almost nothing about his work, beyond the song that was his great success: Make me smile.
Steve Harley
Some Steve Harley songs make me think of a kind of imaginary circus, happy and fierce, as euphoric as it is deranged: something like a mix of Shakespeare's dramas, tragedies and comedies, but in a modern, contemporary context. Its rare combination of sinister, festive, everyday and dreamlike tones is comparable to that of some drawings by the brilliant Guillem Cifré. And, at the same time, it can evoke the complex tone of Pina Bausch's best shows, those that knew how to include in the drama some dose of sense of humor, capable of compensating for certain naked truths.
There are even two Steve Harley masterpieces
From his most melancholic record, I will highlight Tumbling down, Sebastian and The best years of our lives. Their most euphoric songs in terms of rhythm and melody can, however, have disturbing and dark lyrics. The clearest example of this is the fast-paced The psychomodo, which is followed by the circus Mr. Soft. Other pieces of his that know how to spread euphoria are Hideaway and Freedom's prisoner.
Harley was able to compose statements of ideological and philosophical principles to a funky, danceable rhythm, as happens in (I don't believe) God is an anarchist. Her repertoire covers many tones, from the happiness of The Coast of Amalfi to the childish and disturbing evocation of Innocence and Guilt, a song that Iván Zulueta used accurately in his film Arrebato.
