Entrada a la Casa Manuel Dolcet

EINA and the Garden (I) from 1967 to 1994

Activities, performances, and exhibitions from 1967 to 1994

The Casa Manuel Dolcet, designed by the architect Joan Rubió i Bellver, was EINA's first headquarters. It is located at Avinguda de Vallvidrera 44 bis, near the station at the bottom of the funicular.


L’Estació del Peu del Funicular by Xavier Serra de Rivera (1982)

Throughout EINA's history, the garden has been the space par excellence for exhibitions, activities, performances, seminars, and workshops, as well as the traditional end-of-year festivities held annually in June. It was once at the Casa Manuel Dolcet and has been in its current headquarters in the Palau de Sentmenat since 1994. Join us on this journey through its history.


La porta del Jardí by Pep Alemany (1979).

Open the door and enter


La Casa Dolcet by Albert Ràfols-Casamada (1977).

Activities

Artificial snow (1970)

The snow-covered garden on a cold December morning took students and professors by surprise. The tree branches were covered with loose cotton and gifts, and the ground was covered with a light layer of Porex. The activity was done by first-year Design students.

The garden of delicacies (1971)

Angels invite you to taste the delicacies that hang from the trees in the garden: the hard-boiled eggs tree and the forbidden fruit tree. Everything eaten and drunk is white. This activity was created by first-year students.


Students dressed as angels. Photographs by Manel Esclusa.

Transformation of the garden on a 1:1 scale (1972)

Among the activities that take place in the EINA garden, the montage Transformation of the garden on a 1:1 scale by Maria Girona in which she reflects on reality, fiction, and perception stands out. The theatre sets are made of hand-painted wallpaper and are spread throughout the garden, forming a large collage that makes it possible to see the wooden support structures bolstering them. The artificiality of its realism is highlighted by contrasting with the natural elements in the garden, while the latter acquire a different meaning by being included in the fiction.

Performances

Sculptures in the outdoors (1977)

With Sculptures in the outdoors, aided by six actors, Xavier Olivé and Carlos Pazos recreate the models of classical sculptures with their bodies made up as works of terracotta or marble. An hour of stillness and the sound of birds in the garden are amplified to enhance the sensory impact.

Imaginary animals (1985)

In Imaginary animals, Xavier Olivé, Josep Bagà, and the students in the EINA Scenography Workshop are holding, as part of the end-of-year celebration events, an ephemeral activity and show with caged actors representing different mythological animals.

The Pastoral: notes for a frame (1986)

En The pastoral, a giant golden frame encloses a part of the garden where several actors represent a tableau vivant with idyllic scenes typical of Arcadia. A peformance by Xavier Olivé, Josep Bagà and the students on the EINA Stage Design Workshop.

Expositions

June in the garden: like an open air gallery (1981)

The exhibition June in the garden is an exhibit on the garden in the garden, in which this setting acts as an art gallery. The exhibition involves a large representation of professors and students from the school who exhibit paintings, drawings, sculptures, and photographs or do activities about the space.


Work by Manel Esclusa.


Work by Francesc Todó.


Work by Sergi Aguilar.


Persianes pintades (artist unknown)


Work by Francesc Artigau.


Work by Maria Girona.

Around the trunk (1974))

Around the trunk is an activity and exhibition conceived by Albert Ràfols and Xavier Olivé that considers a temporary and partial transformation of the garden at EINA's first headquarters through different actions on the trunks of its trees. Each participant is assigned a different tree or shrub on which they must perform an artistic action.

The serigraphy collection

Since 1977, EINA has maintained the tradition of giving a print (a screen printing, lithograph, or engraving) to professors and supporting partners for the Christmas holiday. Both the garden and the EINA headquarters have been the subject of some of these works. The works l'Estació del Peu del Funicular by Xavier Serra de Rivera (1982), La Porta del Jardí by Pep Alemany (1979), La Casa Dolcet by Albert Ràfols-Casamada (1977) –which were mentioned at the beginning of this article–, el Lliri Blau by Maria Girona (1978), and la Glicina by Xavier Olivé (1981) are just a few examples.


Liri Blau by Maria Girona and la Glicina by Xavier Olivé.

The garden plants following the bloom calendar fill the four seasons of the year with colours and scents. With their penetrating perfume, mimosas bloom in winter, freesias or African flowers grow between the steps of the stairs in springtime, blue lilies bloom on the parterres, and the old wisteria bloom and twist in the garden's centre circle. EINA artists have been encapsulating a broad spectrum of sensory experiences over the years through their craft.

The most recent works on the garden and the EINA headquarters included in the collection are the illustrations of the forest of EINA by Mar Saiz (2011) and the illustrations of the headquarters of EINA by Miguel Bustos on the occasion of EINA's 50th anniversary in 2017.


Paisatges d'EINA by Mar Saiz (2011).


Il·lustracions de les seus d'EINA by Miguel Bustos.

 

Related posts

EINA Garden (II)

 

Text by Xavier Olivé and Rubén Alcaraz.