Institut Ramon LLull

Exhibition by Biel Mesquida and Ewa Karpińska at the Sorbonne’s Centre d’Estudis Catalans

Literature.  París, 18/04/2022

From March 24th to April 21st, the CEC hosts the bidisciplinary exhibition “La utilitat de l’inútil”, between poetry and watercolour. A lecture by Biel Mesquida from the paintings by Ewa Karpińska, representing its echoes and showing art’s possible evolution lines.




The exhibition arises from the encounter of the two artists Biel Mesquida and Ewa Karpińska. The poems and texts by the Catalan poet and narrator, included in Carpe momentum and Closcadelletra, act as a starting point in the paintings by Ewa Karpińska, who explores the various links between literature and painting. According to her, one of these connections is the blank page representing the void that allows an idea, the birth of a universe that is false and true simultaneously: false as it is unreal, and true as it creates real emotions. The creators of the exhibition also want to address the issue of fragility and place of the human being, strengthen the ties with nature and “providing a message that goes through the darkness”.

Biel Mesquida (Castelló de la Plana, 1947) is an author, poet and professor. He was born in Valencia but he lived in Mallorca since childhood. He was made known to the public in the 70s with L’adolescent de sal (1975) and El bell país on els homes desitgen els homes (1974), which was not published until the 80s. He was one of the first authors who addressed homosexuality in his work. He explored various literary genres such as short stories, novel, poetry and non-fiction prose, and he won various literary awards. In 2005, he received the Creu de Sant Jordi de la Generalitat de Catalunya, an award for those who provide cultural and civic services to Catalonia.

Ewa Karpińska (Poland, 1962) graduated in landscape architecture at the University of Life Sciences in 1985, and then moved to Paris and started painting in the 90s. Watercolour and water actions are their main interests, and she specializes in the ‘wet-on-wet’ process to experience the water cycle and pace.

“La utilitat de l’inútil”
Ewa Karpińska and Biel Mesquida
Free entrance From Monday to Friday, from 9am to 12.30am, and from 2pm to 8pm
Wednesdays until 5.30pm


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