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Andrea Torres: “I am still surprised by the fact that someone is interested in what I do”

Written in 21/11/19 · Reading time: 9 minutes
Andrea Torres

Self-taught, passionate, tenacious, and capable of convincing specialized critics, who have already recognized her talent and creativity with a nomination for the 2017 Sony World Photography Awards or with an honorable mention at the New York Center for Photographic Arts, among others. This is Andrea Torres, a Fine Arts graduate from the University of Barcelona, with a unique style that she has been refining throughout her short yet prolific career. Not surprisingly, she has achieved a strong market position without even having reached 30. At twenty-two, she is one of the artists we can “discover” in the exhibition series Below Thirty, organized by Seventy Barcelona, hosting artists under 30 every fortnight, to exhibit their works and share their passion for the world of art. Her work will be on display at The Attik space until the 26th of November.

How did this artistic concern arise in you and how did you end up crystallizing it in photography?

In fact, I have always been interested in photography, especially since I was a child. I really enjoyed cutting out images from magazines, making folders, creating my own stories with collages, with pictures I found in magazines, with drawings I made myself. At the age of eight, I asked the Three Wise Men for a film camera. That was my first camera, with a black and white film. Although it may seem too early, that was the first time I remember being aware of how much I enjoyed collecting images. That was the beginning.

How did this love for photography evolve?

During my teenage years, I bought a better camera and used to take photos with friends. But it was when I started university that I said: I'm really interested in photography. It's a hobby that I enjoy a lot. With my university friends, we would do slightly more artistic and serious photo sessions. But just for fun. I didn't even follow the photography track in my degree. It was more about the pleasure of imagining and creating stories. I really liked the colors, the natural light, the editing afterwards on the computer, fine-tuning the lights...

Have you always known that you wanted to study Fine Arts?

I have always said that I wanted to be either a painter or a National Geographic photographer or a journalist. I always wanted to have a radio show. In fact, I used to record my own cassettes. I did my high school in arts, but then I entered the journalism degree at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. I did the first year and saw that it was not at all my thing, that people had a vocation for journalism and I did not. I much preferred making things up and maybe I would rather be a fiction novelist than a journalist. I saw that it wasn't for me and that it was the best opportunity to do what I really wanted, which was to study Fine Arts. When I made that decision everyone told me: 'You won't be able to make a living from this, it's very difficult...' So I decided that after finishing Fine Arts I would work as a museum curator and setting up exhibitions. That was the idea.

Andrea Torres photography

And when you entered the School of Fine Arts, did you already want to commit to photography, or was it after finishing your degree that you decided to pursue this path?

It was in the last year of my studies. I entered and said: 'I am very clear that I will not mix my hobby, which is photography, with my career, because if I do, I will end up hating what I enjoy. I will do other things instead.' I did traditional engraving techniques, and then a conceptual art track. In my final year of college, I got a job with a major company as a photographer, traveling the world and doing photojournalism. From that experience, I concluded that I had to do something that I really liked a lot because the time I invested had to be spent on something that wouldn't stress me out, neither in the research of the work nor in its execution. I took advantage of my final college project to commit to photography. I did a project on analog photography related to psychoanalysis, dreams... It was from that project that everything began to bear fruit: I presented it, won a new talent award, an honorable mention in a New York contest...

How did you feel when you realized that everyone was starting to believe in your work?

I couldn't believe it. Because the first thing they tell you in school is that you can't make a living from art, you need to have a plan B. And I had a plan B and a plan C, and suddenly I realized that people liked my art and they were interested in it. Even today, I'm still surprised that someone is interested in what I do. Because as I try to do what I want, what I feel like, what comes naturally to me, the fact that someone could be spontaneously interested in that seems curious to me. That means we share things, tastes, and affinities. Receiving all those accolades was like a kind of injection of confidence.

How would you define your work?

I like to define it by emphasizing the aesthetics of the past: I enjoy the natural light of Dutch portraits, I like the paintings of the Renaissance for their dimness... I appreciate an ancient aesthetic but, on the other hand, using a newer medium such as digital photography. It's hard to define my work, but it is: inspiration from works and aesthetics of the past, but with a contemporary twist and mixing techniques, which could be seen as a more conceptual art.

What influences and references inspire you?

I am inspired by random images I find, which can be of anything. It could be a fashion campaign that has a light I like, or it could be an illustration on the cover of a book that caught my eye. I used to have my reference photographers who were Annie Leibovitz and Duane Michals. Now for example, with Instagram, you can find works very easily and see anything, a light or a color combination that is inspiring.

So, do social networks inspire you in this case?

Yes, but I also try not to look at them too much. I think they can also pollute a lot. That is, you can receive so much inspiration that it's very difficult to filter, and in the end, your mind can become saturated with images and colors. That's why I always say that I try to do things that I like, and in the end, I've ended up creating an aesthetic that is very much my own, and when people say 'this reminds me a lot of you,' it makes me very happy. You may like it more or less, but it's recognizable, and that for me is very difficult because I believe that if you search for it expressly, you don't find it. It's something that as you keep working, you end up discovering and seeing.

What is your work routine like?

I start by looking for costumes, volumes, textures, shapes... They are the most important element of the work. Then I create the character, that is, who this person will be. They are all self-portraits, but since I cover their faces and the dresses are always different, I create an identity for this character. Next, I start thinking about the color, what harmonizes with me. Depending on the feeling you want to convey, colors greatly influence the costume. At the end of everything comes the pose, which is what ultimately rounds out what this character is like and will greatly mark the attitude they have. The attitudes are always very serene, very calm, but they still tell you something about the person behind the character.

And regarding the final touch with the paint, do you decide on the color beforehand, or do you do it once you already have the photograph?

First I take the photograph and then I make different small prototypes. There are some where the color that should go is crystal clear. But there are others that have many possibilities that seem right to me. So I make small prototypes and when I have the result, I finally see what works and what doesn't. Then there's the step of doing it on a large scale. Sometimes you scale it up and it doesn't work and you change it, but the color of the stain is always the final touch.

What will people be able to see when they visit the Seventy over these 15 days?

The series The Unknown consists of these female portrait pieces with their faces covered, and you have to imagine who is behind each character. There is also a piece from a variation I made of this series where I experimented with gold leaf, a technique completely opposite to painting that requires much more time, much more patience, which is like a meditation. There is also one of the pieces from my most recent series, Hivernacle, in which I leave digital photography and return to the origins of analog photography, medium format camera, film, and where color has disappeared.

Andrea Torres picture

Would you like to experiment with Smartphone cameras?

I am a camera person. In the end, what I enjoy is creating my large works, because of the impact they have. Perception changes a lot. Also, I like to control things, to adjust the camera settings... And I get the feeling that with a Smartphone everything is very fast, very easy, all too instant. It takes me a long time to take a picture and I like the process and I like to look at it.

How would you rate initiatives like Seventy Barcelona's cycle of exhibitions for young talents ('Below Thirty')?

I value them very positively and in fact I believe that what is needed are things like this. I always say that social networks are very good because you see the pieces digitally, whether it's painting, photography... but being able to go somewhere to see pieces live, what the real result is, what the painting is like, what the sculpture is like, and also, having the chance to reach an audience interested in culture and art is something fantastic. I wish there were more initiatives like this where you are given the opportunity to reach more people so that they can discover your work.

We are about to finish the year. What projects or challenges do you have for 2020?

I'm working on a new series, which is quite secret for now, but I'm starting to use collage.

You've gone back to the Andrea you were at the beginning...

Yes, yes. I've returned to the original Andrea, to the little Andrea. For now, I only have the initial sketches, I'm conducting tests, the first results. But I would say that in January 2020 we will start to see things from a new project that I hope will be as well received as or even more than the previous ones.