Marcel Broodthaers 20 (Syntaxe)

This painting of Marcel Broodthaers draws inspiration from a frame in his 1969 film «La Pluie (Projet pour un texte).» In this scene, Broodthaers is seen writing with a quill as rain gradually dissolves his words, reflecting on the fragility of language and the impermanence of meaning, while also contemplating the transformation of literature into painting—a meditation that blurs the boundaries between word and image.

I have introduced an element absent from the original frame: the artist dons Robert Filliou’s «Galerie Légitime,» a simple paper hat symbolizing a portable, nomadic gallery. This new element ultimately forges conceptual links between different artists, works, places, and periods, all united by a shared idea: artists creating their own museums.

The formal inspiration for this painting stems from the proto-Cubist and Cubo-Futurist movements, particularly the geometric abstraction of the human figure found in the works of Kasimir Malevich.

My aim is to present a broader narrative within art history, one in which Duchamp’s «Boîte-en-valise,» Filliou’s «Galerie Légitime,» and Broodthaers’ «Musée d’Art Moderne, Département des Aigles» proposed critical alternatives to traditional institutions. With my own project, the Davis Museum Barcelona, I continue this tradition, rethinking the museum and the artist’s role within the contemporary cultural landscape.