The colossal work of art located in Open Spa, the luxury property’s wellness and beauty centre, is by the Cordova artist Miguel Gomez Losada.
"Rice Paper", painted on a 15x2.45m glass "canvas", is the name of Ibiza Gran Hotel’s latest art acquisition. The island’s only art hotel was created in 2007 as a live art repository. With the idea of "enveloping clients in beauty", Ibiza Gran Hotel currently exhibits 365 original works of art, a collection that is constantly evolving.
As with the rest of the works decorating the five-star property, the aim of this latest acquisition is site-specific. Its name alludes to the complex process of making rice paper, handmade in the East, with all its organic, floral and handicraft connotations. In the words of the artist: "The work’s title is a aesthetic statement referring to the view itself through the transparency of the glass so as to represent the balance between the painted and unpainted surface, thus achieving a dialogue between the light penetrating the space and the building’s architecture."
So as to make this play of light the principle element, Gomez Losada has dispensed with naturalist references in the work, the chief argument being the sunlight itself and its changes, depending of the time of day and the season. Likewise, the artist has chosen white with the intention of inducing the spectator to see the colours on the other side of the glass, the blue of the water in the pools and the sky, as part of the painting.
This abstract work of art is based on the routines of the Arab baths. The aim of the artist is "that of making the painting seem exquisite to the spectator observing it close-up, paying special attention to the space for which it has been created, while swimming in the pool or relaxing in Open Spa."
At night, bathed in warm light, "Rice Paper" serves as an artistic stage and element of inspiration for the guests of Ibiza Gran Hotel. Furthermore, Gomez Losada maintains that "he has worked from the idea and context of natural beauty, consciously departing from the typical elements recurrently used in the decoration of the island’s hotels."
The making of Rice Paper
