November 9, 2021 / Eye on the Collective
Discovering the Architecture of the Human Body with
Angèlica Arvylàs Torner
For me sculpture is a means or tool to represent a moment, an emotion, a form of beauty. Thanks to figurative art and realism, I can approach in a more faithful way what I want to explain and I express it in a universal visual language.
Angèlica Arvylàs, "Eternity", Bronze, 11 x 32 x 7,5 cm. 2020
We are very happy to share with you a recent interview with alumna of The Florence Academy of Art, Spanish artist Angèlica Arvylàs, that was published recently in Create! Magazine.
In this interview Angèlica touches on the major inspirations behind her sculptures and why she works figuratively. She also speaks about her educational background, including her time studying at FAA, mentioning how her studies in Florence mark “a before and after” in her career. Sharing her artistic process, her feelings on how teaching has changed how she works, and current and upcoming projects, this interview gives a lovely glimpse into the history and mind of an FAA artist.
“Abril”
Resin, Patina with 18 Carates gold painting and oil painting
43 x 42,5 x 87,5 cm
2020
“My biggest source of inspiration since I started my artistic career has always been nature. A deep observation of it, its shapes, rhythms and movements, and discovering how the architecture of the human body follows its same laws, awoke my interest and fascination with the human figure.
With my work I explore the complexity and expressivity of a face or a figure; the gesture, the topography ant its particularity; and this invites me to sculpt not only their physical forms, but also the feeling that evokes, or provokes in me, what I observe.
For me sculpture is a means or tool to represent a moment, an emotion, a form of beauty. Thanks to figurative art and realism, I can approach in a more faithful way what I want to explain and I express it in a universal visual language.”
Angelica Arvylas
“Cleo”
Bronze on Guatemala marble base
Life size
2017
Angelica Arvylas
“Cleo”
Bronze on Guatemala marble base
Life size
2017
Angèlica Arvylàs
“Mamá”
Resin and fiberglass with patina on dekton base
Life size
24 x 46 x 26 cm
2018
Angèlica Arvylàs
“Mamá”
Resin and fiberglass with patina on dekton base
Life size
2018
Angèlica Arvylàs
“Daniel Fukui”
Bronze on marble base
Life size
2019
Angèlica Arvylàs
“Golden foot”
Bronze on marble base
Life size
2017
Angèlica Arvylàs
“Mamá”
Resin and fiberglass with patina on dekton base
Life size
2018
“I’ve worked on many sculptures from a model, from life. When this is the case, for me is essential to be able to read and understand what the person and their character suggest to you, their body expressiveness, their personal nuances.
On many occasions the chosen position appears by chance, as a naturalness result. Other times, instead, I work without a model. Especially in which I want to capture a more personal and introspective emotion, which is born from a previous idea or inspiration.”
Angèlica Arvylàs, “Duende”, Bronze, 101 x 71 x 40 cm, 2021
“I sculpt in clay and reproduce the final piece in bronze or resin. I think that the final material and the patina are also an important part of the process to finish defining what you want to represent with your work.” – Angèlica Arvylàs Torner
More about Angèlica Arvylàs Torner
From her studio in el Empordà, the beautiful area that inspires and inspired so many artists today and in the past like Picasso or Dalí, Angèlica Arvylàs Torner is focused on the study of the human figure. With a strong base of technique and anatomy, she represents the expression, movement, character, poetry, and beauty of the human figure on her sculptures. Going deeper than only getting a superficial image, her main goal is to represent the soul, the emotion or the feelings that any human being, no matter the sex, age, or race, could have or feel; and we can see that in her portraits and figure sculptures.
She has been a finalist in many national and international art competitions, including the globally recognized International ARC Salon, Art Renewal Center, USA, and has exhibited widely throughout Europe. Currently, she teaches sculpture at the Barcelona Academy of Art.
She was born in Barcelona in 1985, and she comes from a Greek and Catalan family. She started her passionate career as a sculptor when she was 19, learning stone carving with the sculptor Enric Sala in Girona, Spain. After a few months, she would work with him on a sculpture for the public area. After one year, she got her first commission also for the public area, at the age of 20, from the town where she grew up, Lloret de Mar. She combined that work with her studies at the Escola Superior d’Art d’Olot, where she studied sculpture during three years.
In 2013 she decided to increase her knowledge and learn more about figurative sculpture, so she was accepted and she moved to Florence, Italy, to study at the prestigious The Florence Academy of Art. She got two scholarships from the school during her time there. In 2017 she completed the Sculpture Program and the Écorché course at the FAA.
Once she was back in Spain, she has been teaching sculpture and anatomy at the Universitat Ramón Llull, la Salle, University in Barcelona. Currently she teaches sculpture at The Barcelona Academy of Art. She is also part of the jury in artistic contests.
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