Eugenio Merino's 'Always Franco. Spain Brand' at ADNGalería

Eugenio Merino's installation 'Always Franco. Spain Brand' opens at ADNGalería in Barcelona, running until August 22, 2026. Originally conceived in 2012, the work returns on the 90th anniversary of the 1936 coup and the 50th anniversary of Franco's death, amid ongoing debate about his legacy. The piece uses a refrigerator as a metaphor for the preservation of Francoism within Spanish democracy, symbolizing the impunity of its crimes and the survival of regime structures through the Transition's pact of silence. The white Admiral General uniform references the 'whitewashing' of the dictatorship and Franco's nautical rhetoric. The fridge's surface incorporates elements of a US soft drink brand, alluding to the 1953 Madrid Pact that granted international legitimacy to the regime in exchange for military bases, and Eisenhower's 1959 visit. The project involves Halim Badawi, Matilde Eiroa San Francisco, and Emilio Silva.