Luis Bisbe de la Fuente Alberto Peral García / Galería Alegría

Sebas, how did you meet Luis and Alberto?

Sebastián
I met Alberto first when I helped to install one of his
exhibitions at Galería Alejandro Sales. At that time, I was working in the gallery, helping to set up exhibitions and looking after the storage part. I suppose I met Luis a bit later, some night in some bar in Raval.
Luis
We had friends in common. You were Daniel Steegmann’s friend.
Sebastián Yes!

SSC
And, Alberto, Luis, have you known each other for longer than that?

Alberto
Not much longer. I arrived in Barcelona in 1994. It was during the years when I was settling in here, meeting people… To be honest, I’m not sure who I met first out of Sebas and Luis. Sebas was an
artist for a time; he even exhibited his work at Halfhouse. Sometime after, he started the Galería Alegría project.
Luis
We used to go to all of the gallery’s openings. As well as an art space, it was a meeting point. I met Alberto when we were setting up Pérez Sica’s exhibition. It was common at that time to work for an exhibition installation company to earn a bit of money.
Alberto The decision to do something together, like this project in the gallery, came about because we’re friends. The starting point for this conversation is very apt, because we’re more friends than anything else. This is the first time all three of us have worked
together on the same artistic project, but before this, we had already connected on other levels: emotional, mental… Over those years, our generation also came together with a younger generation, with Dionis (Escorsa) and Dani (Daniel Steegmann), among others.
Sebastián I Remember when Alberto opened Halfhouse, within a week I was looking for the cheapest space in Barcelona so that I could open a gallery, too. And I found a really charming place. As soon as I signed the contract, I was on the phone to Alberto to tell him about it. Halfhouse pushed me to make that step. etHALL was also starting at that time… We all coincided a lot. It was a really fun, prolific time.

SSC
Alberto, would you say that being an artist while managing a project like Halfhouse, which has meant so much to Barcelona’s artistic community, gives you a different perspective of your own work?

Alberto
It gives me a perspective as an artist, and at the same time, it allows me to experience other projects first hand. You absorb all this experience and coexistence with the artist. Ultimately, that’s the most interesting part. All of it is really enriching, of course… For me, having that relationship with the projects and seeing how an artist brings together an exhibition, all of that
leads to growth as a person and as an artist. As usual with this type of project, a lot of bureaucracy is involved, but that rich experience has shaped me as an artist. As it happens, Sebas and I, for example, were artists before we were gallerists or programmers for independent spaces. For me, this is very important because there’s an understanding, a trust, a different way of asking questions. And that’s really enriching for art. Now, with the project for BGW at Galería Alegría, something similar to that environment in Halfhouse is being created: an environment of friendship, of understanding, knowing and trusting each other. Delving deep, where possible.

SSC
Sebas, I gather that the relationship with the rest of the gallery’s artists must be different.

Sebastián
I’m closer to Alberto and Luis than to other artists. But I usually trust people anyway.
On many occasions I’ve put on exhibitions of artists I don’t know and I haven’t been able to see their work in person until it arrives at the gallery and I unwrap it. With these two, it’s a very different exhibition to what we normally do. We’ve allowed them to do absolutely whatever they want. In fact, we gave them the keys to the gallery and they have been working in the space for weeks.

SSC You’ve given them carte blanche.

Sebastián
Yeah.
Having this type of process that is different to the usual ones brings a lot of meaning to the work we do. We can go to the limits, delve deeper and play with the space.

SSC
Is this the first time you’re working together, Alberto and Luis?

Alberto I I think it’s the first time, or at least the first time so
directly. We might have coincided before in a collective exhibition or at Halfhouse. In these situations, you realise the art is just as important as creating a good environment for creativity to flourish. I mean, this situation where Sebas has
left us with the gallery and trusts us, and let’s see what we come up with. Those spaces of freedom, that let you be there and try things, are where things can happen. The whole process has been really enriching. There’s been a lot of communication, a lot of thoroughness… It’s also important to let the readings made by other people permeate you. That’s the most
magical thing. It happened to me a while ago: I put on an exhibition with a friend of ours, Serafín Rodríguez, and I felt like I’d never learnt so much in such a short space of time. And now I’m getting that same feeling again.
Luis It’s been a really symbiotic creative process, but equally, each of us is presenting our own things. In the final result, there’s respect and clear awareness of each person’s individuality, but at the same time, there’s a dialogue. To achieve something like this, you need to be willing to calm your ego, for the good of the exhibition.

SSC
Can you give us a snippet of what you’re going to present?

Alberto
It’s an exhibition that will reflect that we have been here. In other words, not only has there been a relationship between Luis and me, but there has also been a relationship with the space, which happens to have a lot of character. That’s why we have spent so much time coexisting in it, to size it up. There were still days when we didn’t do anything, but being here
was necessary. We’ve given ourselves plenty of time and we’ve followed other criteria: not those usually adopted in the world of business or work, for example.

SSC
Taking time for exploration, for enjoyment, without having to rush, is quite rare.
To finish up, we always ask a question you should answer briefly, almost without thinking: what do you think makes relationships between artists and gallerists last?

Sebastián
Even if it’s a professional relationship, there must be something more than that. Or that’s how I see it. And for that to happen, there needs to be trust, commitment. You need to row in unison,
because you’re always in the same boat.
Alberto
That’s how I see it, too. If you add affection and
friendship to a professional relationship, more interesting things can happen. But, above all, there must be respect and trust.
Luis
I agree with Alberto completely about trust and respect being essential. Like in any other relationship where you want to avoid stagnation, mutual growth and learning must be stimulated.