THE VALUE OF ART IN THESE TIMES

THE VALUE OF ART IN THESE TIMES

by Norman Warwick

When we first visited to browse around Lanzarote Art Gallery it was to see the Volcan exhibition of visual art works by Ildefonso Aguillar and we were struck by the privileged positions the works were placed in, afforded by generous space and subtle lighting.

This was certainly not one of those galleries where the venue itself gets in the way of the art it displays. The receptionist on duty that day kept a protective eye on the art as we wandered, (and also to ensure that we observed covid protocols) but she was friendly and helpful when we approached her with a couple of queries. When we returned a few weeks later for the inauguration of an exhibition of work by the female artist Masqali, the Gallery owner himself was undertaking meet and greet duties on the front door. This he, too, performed in a friendly and helpful manner. He was certainly not one of those gallery owners who stands in the way of the art he displays.

At the professional level Eduardo Ferina excels as an Architect and Urban planner, with thirty five years of professional experience in top companies, (Isolux Corsan, Dragados, Agroman,Techint), managing large works and professional teams.

´Since my beginnings, in 1977 I have led work in construction companies´, he tell us, ´as Project Manager and Construction Director, trying to develop and stimulate the people who participate in the projects, enriching their lives and transmitting hope that things can always be better, committing them to the project as architectural professionals.´

In this capacity, and with this attitude he has served as Civil Construction Manager with the Al Toukhi Group Of Contracting and with Trading Company Saudí Arabia. He has also served as Director of Construcción at Grupo Isolux Corsan. His career has also seen him function as Project Manager for large works at Dragados y Construcciones  and as Group Manager with Agroman. He has also been Head of Works for Pipelines at Techint Group.

He not only has a track record of inspiring people to achieve their aspirations, as Eduardo Ferina also has a Master’s Degree in Art Market and Business Management, and uses his knowledge in that area, and those same attributes he has shown in the commercial sector to  advise private collectors and institutions in the formation of their collections and investment in art. He also offers guidance on how to use art as an innovative means for project development. His services on Collection Management includes procurement advice, mediation in the purchase and sale of works of art, as well as appraisal and tax studies and details of the finer points of corporate collecting. He also offers bespoke courses in Art Management, Patronage Management and Institutional Relations

´Although my life is architecture,´ he explains, ´my experiences and contacts in that  field are useful in my role as an art collector in the fundamental aspect of positioning artists, in front of an audience in the right setting. Collecting art is my great passion and I find it very enriching and one of the best things that has happened to me in life.

I always remember as a collector, that even when I was young I gathered coins, cards and stamps. As early as the nineteen eighties in the U.S., I visited the Metropolitan of New York and MOMA, and began to travel and get to know the most important museums in the world: the Pompidou in Paris, the TATE in London. I always have a line. ´I don’t buy art to decorate my house.´

Being a collector is a way of life for Edourdo that goes beyond the accumulation of works.

´For more than thirty years I have been a serious collector,´ Eduardo told Sidetracks & Detours when we spoke to him recently, ´and yet, still, the passion of the heart often guides me to purchase a piece.´  

´I have had to learn how to form a collection, rather than to simply buy random pieces I like.´ he says. ¨I have attended debates, and courses such as Menéndez Pelayo, in collaboration with the Institute of Contemporary Art. I learned never to worry about the current value of the market and to buy, instead, what I think is a real work of art.´

Now, his collection is composed of several hundred works of contemporary art. Eduardo loves to share his experience in the field of art, his  success and even his mistakes as well as his secrets, his passion and interest and his motivation, and to recount for people the exciting sidetracks & detours he has followed since buying his first work with which to create his current large collection.

His gallery here on Lanzarote and his home in Madrid are full of wonderful works of art.

Eduardo not only invites artists to exhibit at Lanzarote Art Gallery but also helps them to sell their works during, and beyond, the period of the exhibition. He does this for reasons that are beyond mere profitability. He wants each piece of work to reach its maximum potential viewing audience, but he also knows that artists often employ their works for altruistic purposes. He cites Masqali who, after attending the opening night of her current Lanzarote Art Gallery exhibition flew home to Seville, as a case in point. He told Sidetracks & Detours that she diverts up to 50% of any profit she makes from her art to support and benefit young under-privileged children in Africa.

As Director of Lanzarote Art Gallery, Eduardo has also presented exhibitions, with different artists, in The Albermarle Gallery in London and the Timeless Gallery in Trelleborg in Sweden 2015.

He has also helped display artists´ work in galleries in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and Valencia in Spain. 2017. Apart from at his Lanzarote Art Gallery in Costa Teguise he has exhibited artists elsewhere on the island, in  Haría and Tias, for example, and all over the rest of The Canary Islands, as well as in Malaga on the peninsula.  

Eduardo finds art ´peaceful´ and feels that must be a view shared by people all around the world, as evidenced by the fact that whilst 20% of sales he makes from the exhibitions are to people residing on The Canary Islands, the rest of the sales are truly global and he has helped artists place their works in locations as diverse as Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, New York, Dubai and India.

He hopes and believes that our planet and its art forms will recover from covid and continue supplying thought and wonder to art lovers everywhere.

Meanwhile the impressive exhibition of Moments Converted Into Geometry by Masqali runs until January 22^nd 2021and the sidetracks and detours review, under the same title and published on 15^th December 2020, remains available in our archives. You can also find more details at Masqali – Creativa plástica.

The equally excellent Lanzarote Art Gallery web site at

https://lanzaroteartgallery.com

is also a rewarding read whether you are simply looking for an exhibition to browse and enjoy or to study more closely with a view to purchase. The site contains details of catalogues by a wide number and diversity of artists and gives details of the holistic range of services Eduardo has to offer.