History of the Gallery
The origin: Sala Gaspar
Sala Gaspar was an art gallery located in Consell de Cent #323 in Barcelona, founded in 1909 by Joan Gaspar Xalabarder. Today there is a commemorative plaque in this location.
The gallery started as frames, glass, reproductions and engravins business that, as it entered the artistic world, specialized until it ended up being an art gallery. Committed to avant-garde artistic movements, it promoted the activities of the Club 49 and exhibitions of artists such as Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Joan Miró, Antoni Clavé, Antoni Tàpies, Josep de Togores, Marc Chagall, Georges Braque, Eduardo Chillida, Andreu Alfaro and Alexander Calder. It also contributed to the dissemination of Catalan art throughout North America with various exhibitions of the most representative Catalan artists. In 1988 it was awarded with the Creu de Sant Jordi from the Generalitat de Catalunya.
After the Spanish Civil War, the gallery was managed by the founder's son and nephew: Miquel Gaspar Paronella and Joan Gaspar Paronella, respectively. Joan Gaspar Farreras, Joan Gaspar Xalabarder's nephew-grandson and Joan Gaspar Paronella's son, was part of Sala Gaspar's management team from 1972 until 1991. The gallery closed in 1996 but the family continued with various projects in the art world.
Galeria Joan Gaspar
In 1992, Joan Gaspar Farreras opened the Galeria Joan Gaspar in Plaza Dr. Letamendi - moved in 2018 to Consell de Cent 284, in front of the Sala Gaspar's previous store. This new project continues with the tradition from which it comes, and also presents young artists who have consolidated over time such as Enrique Brinkmann, Claudi Casanovas, Igor Mitoraj, Etienne Krähenbühl, Jean-Baptiste Huynh, and Concha Sampol. Also great artists of the Paris school of the first half of the 20th century such as Gaston-Louis Roux and Suzanne Roger, barely known in Spain, are present in the Gallery.
From October 2003 to January 2015, the Galeria Joan Gaspar also had a gallery in Madrid where numerous exhibitions were held.
The gallery continuously collaborates with institutions and museums in the organization of public, national and international exhibitions. It also participates in both national and international art fairs. Nationally, it was a participant for years in the ARCOMadrid fair, and in 2012 and 2014 in the ArtMadrid fair. Internationally, among others, it attended the India Art Fair from 2014 to 2019; and has participated since 2015 in the Contemporary Istanbul art fair.
Last October 2020, Joan Gaspar Farreras passed away, leaving his partner and companion Nuria Ridameya in charge of the gallery.
