The exhibition “Máscara” (Mask in English) is inspired by life itself—the many faces that emerge when I combine in my work. These faces can be anything and everything we might choose, reflecting what we see or wish to become.
I see figures evoked from our collective imagination: religious gods, wizards and witches, the devil, aliens, saints, wild animals, ancient kings and queens—each one adorned with a blank expression. Some are unsettling, like masks worn at a carnival.
A mask worn at a carnival—something that can conceal who we truly are and, at the same time, offer us a new identity.
A carnival mask that blurs the line between reality and illusion, hiding our true selves while inviting us to become someone or something else.
It is a playful disguise, yet often carries a sense of mystery or even danger—like the masks worn during the madness of a carnival, where roles are swapped, and norms are turned upside down.
A skilled psychologist might use pictures like mine, paired with questions like “What do you see?” to explore and reveal deeper truths about a person’s psyche.
A mask can reveal our deepest selves or the persona we long to embody. The mask we wear to impress, to fit in at work, or to navigate social situations with unfamiliar people. And so on.
The combination of these faces, with their diverse and often ambiguous expressions, and my ongoing questions about the nature of psychological tests, formed the perfect foundation for this exhibition—and for its title: “Máscara”
Through my work and the conversations I’ve had with viewers at past exhibitions, I’ve come to realize that my pictures have the ability to tap into the subconscious.
El Aljibe de Haría. Lanzarote.
An exhibition by Enric Mads
The exhibition hall “El Aljibe de Haría” is located in the town of Haría. The Gallery is in an old cistern that was formerly used to capture and store water for the city in times when water was a scarce commodity.
Now it houses temporary exhibitions of art. Access to the room is down a staircase under the city.
The old cistern is about 200m2 and organized around a floor-length glass skylight that provides natural light and ventilation to the room. The flooring is made of wood and basalt stone edges, which provides not only aesthetic beauty but also aeration of the floor.
