Lluís Cots

LLUÍS COTS (Barcelona, 1946).
No. 128. “Violoncel i piano” series, 1988.
Polyurethane on canvas.
This work was included in the inaugural solo exhibition at the Sala Caja Madrid, on Plaça de Catalunya in Barcelona, in 1988. Subsequently, works from this same series were exhibited at the Galería Greca in Barcelona; at the Sala Libros in Zaragoza; and in the exhibition “Barcelona besucht Berlin” in Berlin in 1992.
Certificate of authenticity included.
Measurements: 130 x 97 cm.

The title of the series, “Violoncel i piano,” suggests an interpretation linked to rhythm and musicality. The work does not depict the instruments literally, but rather translates into the pictorial realm the sonic intensity, cadence, and tonal depth associated with the cello and the piano. The black masses can be interpreted as low chords or resonances, while the white spaces act as pauses, silences, or breaths within a composition marked by visual counterpoint.

Lluís Cots is an abstract-figurative artist whose work navigates a tension between materiality, gesture, and symbolic evocation. His painting constantly interrogates the world: within its dense surfaces and suggested figures lies a profound concern for the human condition, time, and the invisible conflicts that permeate contemporary reality. This concern manifests itself in a restrained manner, without explicit thematic emphasis, leaving the viewer an open space for interpretation.

Active since the early 1970s, Cots has developed a solid and coherent body of work, marked by experimentation with mixed media, painting on canvas, paper, and wood, and a constant exploration of materials. He held solo exhibitions early in his career at galleries such as Crecelius (Tarragona, 1971), Da Barra (Barcelona, 1972), and Subex (Barcelona, 1973–1974), establishing himself in the Catalan art scene. In the 1980s and 1990s, his work gained wider recognition through exhibitions at the Maeght Gallery (Barcelona, 1984), the Sala Cajamadrid (Barcelona, 1988), and international exhibitions in Berlin and Paris, such as his solo show at the Lina Davidov Gallery (Paris, 1999).

His work has also been featured in numerous significant group exhibitions, including charitable projects linked to UNICEF and the fight against AIDS, as well as international exhibitions in Basel, Düsseldorf, Montpellier, and Lorraine, engaging in dialogue with other languages of contemporary European painting.