Illes-1, 1997

The eerily sobering works of Alfons Borrell have seen him rise as one of the most distinguished figures of abstract art in his home of Catalan. Borrell’s art style evolved and flourished throughout his years of painting. Graduating from the School of Fine Arts of Sant Jordi, he initially adapted a style within figuration. This quickly developed into abstract expressionism and gestural painting, with Borrell eventually landing on a unique style of his own. The stylistic nuances of Alfons Borrell’s work stir feelings of dysphoria and disassociation within the audience. Borrell asks questions through his work. In pieces such as his 1997 Illes 1, or 1990’s Espais 6¸ we see huge square masses of color imposing on the painting’s form. These massive shapes of color were not atypical for Borrell. Particularly in his later work, Borrell employs this technique to disrupt the traditional flow of abstraction. Alfons Borrel is a master of creating paintings that exist within a space of surrealism, detachment and deep expression.