Nuria Rabanillo: Artista de Pintura y Escultura | Exposiciones en NY y España
My Story
I am Nuria Rabanillo-de la Fuente. I was born in Zamora in 1966, although my roots are in the town of Mombuey, where I spent my early years, and which has been the constant in my life, my place to return to.
Education and Artistic Career
After an artistic education fostered since my childhood, I moved to Madrid in the mid-1980s to study at the School of Applied Arts and Artistic Trades, during the vibrant 1980s in Madrid, with the design boom as a backdrop. I directed my artistic skills not only towards Art but also towards training in the world of Design, which was flourishing at the time.
During those years, I completed my training by attending any space that supported my development, such as the workshops at the Circulo de Bellas Artes. Eventually, I was awarded a scholarship as a young design professional to study for a year at the Istituto Europeo di Design in Milan in 1994. It was upon arriving in Italy that I decided to overcome my fear of not being able to survive on my art and fully committed to my artistic work.
My Work
My work is primarily developed in the field of painting, with explorations in sculpture and photography/digital art. I would describe myself as multidisciplinary.
A constant in my work is the focus on the human being, their inner gaze, and their relationship with their environment. The manipulation to which human beings are subjected influences not only internal development but also interaction with society. My characters are stripped of any ornamentation that defines their age, gender, or status. I am interested in the human being as an individual, their inner perspective, and their strength in the face of external pressure. These characters allow me to express my way of seeing the world.
Life Experiences
Life has led me to live in different realities:
- From the increasingly depopulated reality of my homeland, among other places,
- To the vibrant Madrid of the 1980s where I studied,
- To the innovative Milan of the 1990s, where I was awarded a master's scholarship for young design professionals,
- And to the nearly seven years I spent in post-9/11 New York, where I obtained an O-1 Visa.
I returned to my homeland for personal reasons. Upon returning to my origins, to a land that is slowly dying but to which I feel deeply connected, the adobe and stones of the houses crumble, and the earth reclaims them, taking the lived memory with it.
I am haunted by the absences, the void left by those who left and will never be filled. This duality has shaped my life, between the urban and the rural, between the need for tranquility and space provided by my homeland and the urban world I am inevitably dependent on to promote my work.
My Studio and Technique
I work in my studio, located in La Josa, my family home, from where all my creative projects emerge. I advocate for the ability to express what I need to say from here.
Technically, I was fortunate to start my training very young, at the age of 10. My parents, seeking a bright future for me, sent me to a boarding school. By chance, I was enrolled in a school where, at least in my time, Art was a top-tier subject, and the technical and creative training was remarkable and rare.
An unusual skill was discovered in me, and I definitively found my path. Later, I attended the School of Art and other Design schools, participated in the free workshops of the Circulo de Bellas Artes, but I already had the foundation, and my path was set.
This early training made the brush, for instance, an extension of my hand and, simultaneously, a way of life and a reason to dedicate my life to.
Exhibitions and Collaborations
My work has been exhibited in art spaces on both sides of the Atlantic, in both solo and group exhibitions. I have also collaborated with artists from other disciplines. I have always been a free spirit.
Given that my work is perhaps very personal, as has been my career, I fully trust in my personal and artistic project since they are intertwined. I continue to advance step by step towards elevating my work to the status it deserves.
