The MACA, within the scheduled activities of the Sempere Year on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the
death of Eusebio Sempere, wishes to pay tribute to the Alicante artist through an exhibition
composed entirely of works from the MACA collections that demonstrate the
importance of music and literature in Semperian work while highlighting the meticulous
silkscreen work carried out by Abel Martín.
The Four Seasons of 1965 is the first portfolio of artistic silkscreens printed
in Spain. It was 50 years ago and the presentation at the Juana Mordó Gallery became an unprecedented success
in terms of public, critical, and sales. It was the beginning of one of the most important sets of graphic work
created in 20th century Spain, that of artist Eusebio Sempere, exceptional
both in its quality and quantity. Approximately two hundred works including silkscreens,
lithographs and engravings, elaborated by hand in which the highest levels of
perfection are achieved, always meticulous and sometimes precious.
9 portfolios of original silkscreens by Eusebio Sempere are presented, all printed by Abel
Martín as if it were a team effort, which trace the vital trajectory of both artists
and demonstrate the joint artistic collaboration, the union and spiritual communication.
Sempere would be the mind behind the forms and colors that Abel Martín, an excellent
printer, then transferred onto paper through the superposition of silk screens, one for each
of the colors used. Sometimes more than 40.
The Four Seasons of 1965, Nayar Album of 1967, Alarma Book, Transparency of Time or
The Alhambra of 1977, Homage to Gabriel Miró of 1978, The Light of the Psalms of 1980, Spiritual
Canticle of 1982 or the posthumous portfolio of The Four Seasons of 1988 that Abel Martín would complete
alone, combine the magic of numbers that do not exist with the precise literature for each
line. All portfolios are accompanied by literary texts, experimental, avant-garde,
classical or mystical. Pedro Laín Entralgo, Julio Campal, José Miguel Ullán, Edmond Jabès, the
Arab poets of Granada, Gabriel Miró, biblical psalms or Saint John of the Cross presented in turn by Rafael Alberti, Gerardo Diego, Vicente Aleixandre, Juan Cantó or Vicente Aguilera Cerni,
words set in the forms and colors that inspire souls with the desire to stay there and take
a seat. The Four Seasons, 1965
It consists of 4 original silkscreens printed by Abel Martín and the author himself, each accompanied
by a poem by Pedro Laín Entralgo. It was published by the Juana Mordó Gallery in
Madrid, with a limited edition of 50 signed and numbered copies. The design and printing
of the typography as well as the portfolio presentation were carried out in the workshops of Artes
Gráficas Luis Pérez, in Madrid.
Nayar Album, 1967
It consists of 4 original silkscreens by Eusebio Sempere printed by Abel Martín and 4 poems by
Uruguayan poet Julio Campal. It was published by the Juana Mordó Gallery in Madrid, with an edition of
50 signed and numbered copies. The typography and portfolio presentation were carried out
by Artes Gráficas Luis Pérez of Madrid.
Alarma Book, 1976
It is a book composed of 8 original silkscreens by Eusebio Sempere that illustrate visual poems
by José-Miguel Ullán, all printed by Abel Martín. The typography and presentation were
carried out by Industrias Gráficas Caro of Madrid. The book with cardboard binding covered
with fabric with cream-colored stripes is published by Ediciones Rayuela with an edition of 160
copies. Transparency of Time, 1977
It consists of 5 original silkscreens by Eusebio Sempere printed by Abel Martín and four
prose poems by Egyptian poet Edmond Jabès in Spanish translation by José-Miguel Ullán. It was
published by the Carmen Durango Gallery in Valladolid with an edition of 95 copies signed and
numbered by the artist. The typography was composed by Fotomecánica Castellana and printed at
Gráficas Andrés Martín in Valladolid. The presentation in a wooden case was carried out by
Artes Gráficas Luis Pérez of Madrid.
The Alhambra, 1977
It consists of 9 original silkscreens by Eusebio Sempere printed by Abel Martín and 13 pages of
text that include a Porch by poet Rafael Alberti and 9 fragments of Arabo-Andalusian casidas
written by Ibn 'Atiyya, Ibn Bayyā', Ibn Sāra, Abū Bakr B. Hišām, Ibn Zamrak, Ibn Razin, Ibn al-
Zaqqāq (with two), and Ibn Šuhayd, in Spanish translation by Arabists Emilio García
Gómez and Emilio de Santiago Simón. The edition consists of 110 copies and was published by the
Rodríguez-Acosta Foundation of Granada and Juan March Foundation of Madrid, with the collaboration of the
Alhambra Foundation of Granada. Nine geometric designs printed in one color
on vegetable paper are inserted, created by Sempere at the Computing Center of the University of Madrid,
in 1972. The typography was composed and printed in Barcelona by Casamajó and the portfolio presentation was designed and carried out by Jaume and Jordi Blassi of Barcelona.
Homage to Gabriel Miró, 1978
Published by the Italia Gallery in Alicante, the sixth portfolio of graphic work by Sempere consists of
8 original silkscreens printed by Abel Martín, an introductory poem written by Gerardo
Diego and eight text fragments by Gabriel Miró, selected by Elena Escolano and taken from
The Cherries of the Cemetery (1910), Big Child (1922), Within the Enclosure (1916), Corpus and Other
Stories (1951), Our Father Saint Daniel (1921), The Sleeping Smoke (1919, two fragments) and The
Novel of My Friend (1908). The edition consists of a print run of 110 signed and
numbered copies. The texts were printed by Gráficas Sucesores de Such Serra and the portfolio was
made by Encuadernaciones Moscú, also in Alicante. The Light of the Psalms, 1980
It includes 7 original silkscreens by Sempere that Abel Martín printed on parchment paper, a
commentary by Juan Cantó Rubio and 7 biblical fragments printed in Hebrew and in Spanish,
taken from Psalms 17, 18, 28, 49, 77, 111 and 134. It was published by the artist himself and an edition of 97 signed and numbered copies was made. The printing of the texts and presentation
was handled by Artes Gráficas Luis Pérez of Madrid, with the entire portfolio made on
handmade papers with watermark in the workshop of Segundo Santos of Cuenca.
Spiritual Canticle (Homage to Saint John of the Cross), 1982
It is composed of 7 original silkscreens by Sempere printed by Abel Martín, with a
presentation by Vicente Aleixandre (reproduction of a letter from the poet addressed to Sempere and
dated in Madrid, June 2, 1982) and 7 fragments taken from the Spiritual Songs of
Saint John of the Cross, specifically from Songs 4, 11, 14, 15, 21, 32 and 35. Published by the artist
with an edition of 99 signed and numbered copies. The portfolio was composed in the workshops of
Artes Gráficas Luis Pérez, Madrid.
The Four Seasons, 1988
The portfolio was started during Eusebio Sempere's lifetime and the editing work was interrupted as a
result of his death. It was published three years later, in 1988. It consists of 4
silkscreens printed in the workshops of Serigrafía Ibero-Suiza in Valencia supervised by Abel
Martín. The print run was 125 copies marked with Roman numerals with the artist's signature
printed in silkscreen, and 125 copies in Arabic numerals. It includes a presentation text
by Vicente Aguilera Cerni and, accompanying each of the silkscreens, a musical score based on
the seasonal motif that inspired them.