The REM collection was born out of a period of global upheaval triggered by the COVID-19 Pandemic in 2020, which is still ongoing.

 

This period of turmoil has changed the lives of millions of people, including my own. Suddenly everything went from a routine frenzy to a calm deprived of freedom that frightened even the bravest. I no longer have to go to work, the café where I have my coffee every morning has closed, I can no longer meet my friends or go shopping. These things that were sometimes done out of pleasure and sometimes out of obligation are put on the back burner, I don't have to plan any of this any more. After celebrating for three days with my wife that I didn't have to go to work, I realise that I can enjoy being at home, chatting with my wife and even going back to cooking for real. This is when I realise that I have something I have been missing for many years, I have TIME again.

 

Days go by watching movies, eating, creating and above all, sleeping. Little by little the scenes of work and stress begin to fade from my dreams and fantasy begins to take its place. So many hours of sleep invested transport me to scenarios of all kinds, even to past events that blend with the present. Now my dreams occupy a large part of my daily life, so I decided to recreate them in my works.

 

Given the situation and the few materials I had available I thought that the best way to represent something produced by my mind was to use charcoal, some acrylic and canvas. The works are quite large as I wanted to draw the viewer into the representation so the format had to help with that. The colours in the pieces had to absorb the attention and not transmit uncomfortable visual impacts, so I used a palette of ochre and orange. Orange, yellow and ochre are warm colours that can convey action, movement and enthusiasm. They can be cheerful colours in the case of yellow and orange, which increase optimism and confidence. Ochre on the other hand tends to invite uncertainty, loneliness and mystery. These colours are also associated with lust or sensuality.

 

The purpose of this collection is to capture the dreams that have marked me the most during the period of confinement and that in some way the viewer can find similarities with his own experiences. Each painting is a story and a point of connection with "reality"; the experience of each person when they close their eyes and begin their REM journey.