I wanted to introduce Estrambotism to the world with a major exhibition. Make it known. A birth announced through another birth: the birth of Estrambotism alongside that of Venus. A trilogy of colossal paintings. The first and most iconic would be inspired by one of the painters who fascinated me as a child—Botticelli.

“The Birth of Venus”—a static, rigid composition with exquisite drawing. Soft colors and mythological beings. A piece that struck me deeply. From the moment my grandmother, Miss Negra, would deposit her teacher’s paycheck at the bank and receive a book as a gift. Money exchanged for books with modest reproductions, from cheap print editions. Bank-issued editions.

The scale? Massive. Outlandish traits for outlandish paintings. The first piece of the visual manifesto. And of course, painted in oil—there was no other choice. Oil… the queen of techniques. Sensual by nature, limitless. With oil, anything is possible. Transparency or texture. Fragile or tough. Figurative or abstract. Line or blotch. Subtle or flat. Simple. Oil and pigments—linseed, poppy, walnut… lapis lazuli, earthy tones, ochres, oxides… Stripping it all down to pure essentials to give shape to perfection. Unchanged over centuries, true to its origins. The stretcher: one solid piece. The canvas too. No diptychs, no triptychs, no gimmicks. Real easel painting—wooden stretcher, Belgian or Egyptian linen. 30 meters of fabric stretched across two horizontal pulls. Hammer and anvil. Needle and thread. 72 square meters. Wood and wicks. Iron and welding. And a hand plane. These were uncharted paths—no one else was around.

216 square meters to contain time, power, and freedom. And my dog. He didn’t seem like much, but to me, he meant everything. Hydraulic systems, polyethylene pipes, 380 volts, rotary motors with controlled inertia. Fall prevention systems. All of it, just to avoid falling. And a space—a place to paint.

Then I started drawing.
I needed a blank sheet of paper and a few pencils. No—lots of pencils and lots of erasers.

Quim Hereu
Excerpt from the book “Quim Hereu – The Estrambotic Manifesto.”