Art al Quadrat's 'Transmutación. Segundo acto' Turns Memory into Scar at Swinton Gallery

Swinton Gallery in Madrid hosts 'Transmutación. Segundo acto', a project by Art al Quadrat that transforms memory into visible matter, reflecting on institutional violence against those persecuted for identity, sexual orientation, or dissent under Franco. The exhibition is built on the idea that words disappear but traces remain, with scars inscribed on bodies and collective memory as symbols of resistance. Art historian Juan Ramón Barbancho notes that words inscribed on photographed backs fade while skin redness persists as a metaphor for indelible wounds. The show recalls prisoners in the 'invertidos' module of Carabanchel prison, women controlled by the Patronato de Protección a la Mujer, and those subjected to summary trials. The backs depicted function as counter-monuments, recovering silenced experiences and vulnerable bodies, proposing intimate, bodily, and affective memory. The title suggests transformation, symbolically opening cage doors and converting pain into knowledge, wound into memory, and memory into resistance. The exhibition runs until June 27, 2026, with guided tours on June 5, 12, 13, and 26, and a closing dance on June 27.