A R B Ó: Permanència, Canvi, Oblit i Regressió [Permanence, Change, Oblivion and Regression]

There are two realities of southern Catalonia that border on oblivion: the Delta de l’Ebre [Ebro Delta], threatened by the physical regression of its coasts, underestimated at all levels for decades, and the cultural legacy of this area, represented by the literary work of Sebastià Juan Arbó, a writer marginalized within the framework of Catalan literature, and part of whose work is unpublished in drafts, manuscripts and scripts composed mechanically at the Arxiu Comarcal del Montsià [Comarcal Archive of Montsià].

The work of Guillem Gasparin is located at the viewpoint of the pond of the Encanyissada in front of the House of Wood, and it is an installation based on editorial layout work and graphic design, which materializes in serial and numbered diptychs that, collectively, form a graphic and typographic puzzle that composes the word ARBÓ. It is an ephemeral proposal, an installation that facilitates a clear and striking reading in a first impression, but, as the diptychs move and modify thanks to the serialization and numbering work, the word ARBÓ undergoes changes that affect it both visually and in terms of its readability.

Thus, this installation seeks not only to rescue the literary work of Sebastià Juan Arbó but also to highlight the importance of the territory and its connectivity with artistic production.

The serial diptychs represent the phases of regression (both physical and that related to memory) and the phases of the parallel situation both Ebro Delta and the legacy of its head author: permanence, oblivion, change and regression. These letters, which we find inside the work, are exposed to both weathering and human action. It is precisely the human being who is responsible for degrading the work, since each spectator can take part. Thus, a direct relationship is created between the progressive deterioration of the piece and human intervention, symbolizing the way in which people’s action impacts on both the territory and the memory of the Ebro Delta.

A R B Ó: Permanència, Canvi, Oblit i Regressió [Permanence, Change, Oblivion and Regression] is part of the collaboration between Lo Pati. Centre d’Art Terres de l’Ebre and Sala d’Art Jove.