AD SPAIN (Sept 2023), Escala de Valores. p. 26
Photography: Pablo Zamora
Stylist: Ana Rojas

Esther Merinero (b. 1994, Madrid) studied her BA in Fine Art at Chelsea College of Arts. She graduated in 2021 from MA Sculpture at the Royal College of Art with the support of Fundació “La Caixa” as she was awarded a fellowship for postgraduate studies. In recent years, she has been awarded grant for visual arts from La Comunidad de Madrid or the XXXIII Circuitos Fine Art Award. Her work has been included in international exhibitions at, CentroCentro (Madrid), CCCC (Valencia), Dada Post (Berlin), Charsoo Honar (Tehran) or Saatchi Gallery (London), and is currently represented by the gallery Pradiauto (Madrid). In January, she presented a cohisive body of work for her first institutional show at Can Felipa Arts Visuals (Barcelona) with her biggest solo show yet.

Esther has given lectures and workshops internationally at institutions such as University of the Arts (London), University of the Creative Arts (Farnham) and now also teaches at Expositivo Academy (Madrid) and IED (Madrid).

Her practice pays constant attention to the notions of protection, growth, fragility and love which respond to the urgent social climate of the situation we are living in. She creates new/alternative realisms as a potentiality to destabilise actual modes of living. She develops these ideas through a variety of mediums often triggered by text and followed by incorporating performative wearables, objects of affection and contained liquids. These pieces are activated in a slow narrational manner which unfolds and alters through the potential performativity brought in by particular agents —collaborations with choreographers and musicians— and the audience.

COMING UP & ON

Ensanchar la puerta
Centro Centro, Madrid
09th March - 02nd June

SELECTION OF SOLO EXHIBITIONS

la 1:11 i se t’escapa
Can Felipa Arts Visuals, Barcelona
20th Jan - 20th April

Heart Keeper
Pradiauto, Madrid

Enredo; un hilo de plata
Feria ArteSantander, Santander

Holding me, aprieta bien el puño y un rato más
Habitación Número, Madrid

I broke out of silk walls for you
Aparador Monteleón, Madrid

I’ll be home soon
Alimentación 30, Madrid

SELECTION OF RECENT GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2024
ARCO 2024, Duo Booth. Pradiauto, Madrid

2023
Hall of Mirrors. PLOP, London. Curated by Georgia Stephenson
TODOTERRENO. Guetadar, Navarra
Todo lo demás. Centro Centro, Madrid
Between Here and There. Season SZN, London

2022
Fertile Soil. VO Curations, London
La Cámara del Eco. Sala Arte Joven, Madrid
Around, Above and Beyond. Pradiauto, Madrid
La flecha que mata el tiempo. ABM, Madrid

2021
London Grads Now. Saatchi Gallery, London
Meatspace. The Koppel Project, London
De oro en su nucleo. Pradiauto, Madrid
El Dormitorio. CCCC, Valencia
PROXY. Cromwell Place, London
Hot Links. Pradiauto, Madrid