Sílvia Gubern, pioneer of conceptual art, opens exhibition at Can Framis

Elisava Alumni Sílvia Gubern will open her exhibition Esplendor. Tornar a l’origen on November 18 at the Can Framis Museum (Fundació Vila Casas), where it will remain on view until February 22, 2026.

A graduate from Elisava’s very first class, Gubern was one of the pioneers of conceptual art in Catalonia in the late 1960s. Together with Jordi Galí, Antoni Llena, and Àngel Jové, she co-founded the group El Maduixer and, in 1969, spearheaded one of the first arte povera and conceptual art shows in Catalonia and Spain. One year later, with the video piece Primera Mort (1970), she paved the way for the history of video art in the country.

Beyond her role in the so-called ephemeral, performative, poor, and conceptual artistic practices, her career has spanned graphic, textile, and interior design. In 1973, alongside Àngel Jové, she was responsible for the interior design project and the iconic graphic identity of the Zeleste music venue, a touchstone of Barcelona’s counterculture. In the 1980s, her textile prints for Mariquita and Transtam contributed to the rise of design in postmodern Barcelona. She also designed book and record covers, posters, and collaborated on spaces such as the Marfil restaurant and Sala Vinçon.

An artist and poet, she has exhibited at institutions such as MACBA and the Santa Mònica Art Center, and authored several poetry collections, including Imperdibles (1991) and La puerta de los lindes (1992).

With Esplendor. Tornar a l’origen, Sílvia Gubern returns to Barcelona after three decades to present a selection of one hundred works that synthesize her groundbreaking trajectory in Catalonia’s visual and plastic arts. The exhibition invites visitors to rediscover art as a path to consciousness and spiritual transformation.