Matt Mullican: the sign is the circle

Matt Mullican (Santa Monica, 1951) has been exploring, through symbols, the systematization, structure and order of his vision of the world for over fifty years. Now, the exhibition 'The Sign is the Circle', a collaborative proposal between the ProjecteSD gallery, in Barcelona, and 1MiraMadrid , invites you to explore his multifaceted vision of the universe.

This dual exhibition is two independent but inseparable parts, as Álvaro de los Ángeles describes in the text accompanying the exhibition. ProjecteSD hosts Mullican's sixth solo exhibition in this space, consolidating a relationship that has been built over decades. Among the exhibited pieces, which range from the artist's first drawings in the seventies to the 'Things Change in Heaven' series, a narrative line emerges that highlights both Mullican's personal evolution and his collaboration with the gallery.

'Untitled (change in heaven)', Matt Mullican (2024)

The circle, more than a geometric figure, becomes a metaphor in Mullican's universe. It is a characteristic element in his work and is presented as a symbol-bridge that connects earthly dimensions with the intangible. In pieces such as 'Untitled (Heaven)', the red circle painted inside a black one acquires a symbolic force. Through this element, Mullican manages to break through the barriers of written language, and explores the power of pictograms to connect universal meanings. This approach, inherited in part from the postulates of Pop Art, allows him to show a transcendent perspective without falling into religious mysticism.

The fact that it is a project shared between two galleries reinforces the idea of a single fragmented discourse, where each space provides a different perspective on Mullican's vision. In Barcelona, his work is situated as a timeline that crosses the almost fifty years of his career, while in Madrid this narrative is expanded with other pieces and reflections.

The exhibition will be open to the public until January 18 and allows visitors to get to know Mullican's work up close, which continues to define his own existence and, at the same time, decipher the complexity of the world through its signs.

'Untitled (heaven)', Matt Mullican (1983)