On the one hand, Almarcegui focuses her attention on abandoned spaces and structures in the process of transformation; on the other, she investigates the different connections that can be established between architecture and the urban order, as well as the materialities that conform our surroundings.
The works that Lara Almarcegui (1972, Zaragoza) has been developing over the course of nearly twenty years are situated at the border between urban renewal and urban decay, and make visible what tends to escape general notice. On the one hand, Almarcegui focuses her attention on abandoned spaces and structures in the process of transformation; on the other, she investigates the different connections that can be established between architecture and the urban order. The work of Lara Almarcegui poses questions about the current state of the construction, development, use, and decay of spaces that are apparently peripheral to the city. In her large- scale projects she provokes a dialogue between the different elements that make up the physical reality of the urban landscape, in its constant transformation through demolitions, excavations, construction materials, and contemporary ruins.
Lara Almarcegui lives and works in Rotterdam. Her work has been the object of numerous solo exhibitions in institutions such as Graphische Sammlung, Zurich (2019); IVAM, Valencia, Spain (2019); Art Basel (2018); Casino Luxembourg (2016); Kunsthaus Baselland, Switzerland (2015); Gemmeente Museum Den Haag, the Netherlands (2015); the Stedelijk Museum, Den Bosch (2012). Almarcegui has also participated in many collective exhibitions in institutions such as Kröller-Müller Museum, Otterlo (2020), Centro Botín, Santander (2020), Kunsthalle Karlsruhe (2020), Museum M+, Hong Kong (2019), MACBA, Barcelona (2015), and Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven (2015), among others. Almarcegui has also participated in the 14th Biennale de Lyon, France (2017); the 1st Triennale of Aichi, Nagoya, Japan (2013); Manifesta 9 (2012); the Taipei Biennial (2010); the 2nd Athens Biennial (2011). In 2013 she represented Spain at the 55th Venice Biennale.
Lara Almarcegui’s works are in important public and private collections, most notably in those of the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; MACBA, Barcelona; Museo Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid; MUSAC, Leon; CAAC, Sevilla; FRAC Pays de la Loire; FRAC Normandie Rouen; Rabo Bank Collection, Utrecht; Sharjah Art Foundation, Sharjah; FRAC Alsace, Sélestat; Les Abattoirs, Toulouse; FRAC Bourgogne, Dijon; and the PhotoMuseum, Winterthur.