Contemporary Artist
Polyphemus, son of Poseidon, asks his father for help when Odysseus runs away to the sea and becomes blind, arousing his father’s anger. In this work, Poseidon is represented at the top with the icon of a sea monster and at the bottom we have the island’s cyclops.
Vinhos Empatia Superior, Empatia Vital e tinta da China sobre papel de aguarela
30,5 x 21,5 cm
2024
In the world of contemporary art, few exhibitions manage to captivate the senses and redefine tradition as A Tona: Monstros e Vinhedos, the latest collection by Spanish artist Lola Escámez. The exhibition, currently on display, invites visitors to immerse themselves in a unique artistic experience where wine transforms into brushstrokes, textures, and emotions.
What makes Escámez’s work truly groundbreaking is her innovative technique: she uses wine as if it were watercolor, applying it to different surfaces to explore the unpredictability of oxidation, intensity, and chromatic depth. The natural evolution of the pigments creates an ever-changing visual effect, making each piece a living work of art.
The exhibition A Tona: Monstros e Vinhedos is not just a showcase of paintings; it is an invitation to explore the fluidity of wine in art. The textures range from delicate and translucent layers to deep, velvety stains that evoke the passage of time and the essence of winemaking. The interaction between light, air, and liquid results in an organic dialogue between material and meaning.
Lola Escámez’s artistic approach breaks with conventional painting methods and positions her as a pioneer in this discipline. By choosing wine as her primary medium, she connects history, nature, and emotion in a single stroke. The unpredictable oxidation process adds an ephemeral and dynamic quality to her works, making each piece unique.
Beyond the visual impact, A Tona: Monstros e Vinhedos challenges our perception of art materials. It raises questions about sustainability, natural pigments, and the fusion of sensory experiences. Can a sip of wine and a brushstroke tell the same story? Escámez seems to answer with a resounding yes.
Brochure:
“À Tona: Monstros e Vinhedos” – Latani & Pé Franco
This sculpture composed of four pieces narrate the love story between Dionísio and Ampelo, with the latter’s transformation into a vine, is a work of art that transcends mere visual representation. The vine, which is born, grows, bears fruit and is renewed every year, is a powerful metaphor for the cycle of life and death. The sculpture invites us to reflect on our own finitude and the search for a deeper meaning to existence. It carries with it a deep symbolic and historical meaning, especially when we consider the context of the Ampelographic Garden of Alenquer.
Iron + canvas +Empatia + Popis&Vital+ India ink + bleach, tartaric acid and wood, with a resin finish
130 x 90 x ø12
110 x 80 x ø12
90 x 70 x ø12
70 x 50 x ø12
2024
From September 5th to October 5th, 2024, the prestigious exhibition “Le Mur des Collectionneurs” took place, showcasing a stunning collection of contemporary art and curatorial expertise. Hosted at the Sociedade Nacional de Belas Artes, the event brought together a wide array of artists and collectors, highlighting the creative dialogue between art and language, inspired by the conceptual legacy of Joseph Kosuth.
Among the standout artists featured was Lola Escámez, a Spanish contemporary artist based in Portugal, who captivated attendees with her artwork “Cyclopes: The Breath of Euripides”. Created using wine and ink, her innovative approach demonstrated the power of combining traditional mediums with modern perspectives.
This groundbreaking event underscored the evolving role of curators as creators, bridging the worlds of art and philosophy, and providing a platform for artistic expression at its finest.
This work represents the idea that the Cyclops were considered lawless, stateless, dedicated only to pastoralism and ignorant of agriculture. According to this, Lola Escamez, shows Polyphemus is represented trying to dance when he is in ecstasy after the 3 wineskins that Ulysses (Odysseus) gave him to drink.
Empatia + Vital + Chinese ink
30.5 x 21.5
2024
In this composition, Lola Escamez once again highlights the triumph of the rational over the irrational. Notice symbols such as the image inside the cyclops of Ulysses (Odysseus) with a pensive look, representing the plot he is putting together to escape the clutches of Polyphemus. Note also the textures of the political map and the representation of the nomadic movement, both of the Cyclopes and of Odysseus himself, a symbol that coincidentally unites the two rivals.
Empatia + Vital + Chinese ink
52.5 x 42.5
2024
This composition represents the island of the Cyclops, made up of caves and cliffs. The lower part of the composition is represented by a deep cave headed by a large mouth with teeth, showing once again the irrational nature of these monsters and the textures representing the topographic maps represent nomadic movement.
Empatia + Vital + Chinese ink
73.5 x 104.5
2024
In Greek mythology, Telemus was a cyclops son of Eurymos with the gift of prophecy. Telemus had predicted to Polyphemus that he would be blinded by a human named Ulysses and this image represents Polyphemus’ lament because the omen was fulfilled.
Empatia + Popis&Vital + Chinese ink
77.5 x 57.5
2024
This work narrates the moment in which Ulysses blinds Polyphemus with the olive tree stick and the eye starts to bleed. This moment represents the suffering of the Cyclops, it can be noticed especially by the large central blood stain that appears in the image.
Empatia + Popis&Vital + Chinese ink + saffron + bleach
31.5 x 21
2024
This work speaks of the migratory movement or the nomadic movement of the Cyclopes, we must speak that when Ulysses goes to the island of the Cyclopes what he is looking for is hospitality and what he finds is hostility, repeating this process throughout history and today.
in the painting in the upper part appears a darker figure as triumphant, representing the immigrant and the lower part would be representing neptune, so we can see perfectly that it is a victorious nomad emerging from the absorbing waters.
Empatia + Popis&Vital + Chinese ink
21 x 30
2024
