SELECTED #10

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FERNANDO SÁNCHEZ CASTILLO
AZOR / GUERNICA SYNDROME
2012, 32’ 23’’, single channel, edition of 5 + 3AP
Born towards the end of Franco’s dictatorial
regime and fascinated by history, Sánchez
Castillo deepens his study of Spain’s darkest
moments by examining the propagandistic
mechanisms of memorials and political myths.
Azor / Guernica Syndrome is a film showing
the transformation process of the Azor (A-91)
leisure yacht built by the Bazán shipyard for
General Franco. Used mainly for cruising and
fishing, it was the setting for various historical
events such as the ‘Azor conversations’
between Franco and Don Juan de Borbón in
1948, during which it was decided that Don
Juan’s son, the young prince Juan Carlos,
would return from exile to study in Spain. Ten
years after Franco’s death and during the
transition to democracy, the Socialist Prime
Minister Felipe González spent a controversial
summer holiday on the yacht in 1985; the press
compared his behaviour to Franco’s. In 1990,
the Spanish government auctioned the vessel,
specifying that it should be destined for the
scrapyard. Nevertheless, it was purchased
by a businessman who wanted to turn it into
an entertainment venue at Marbella Bay. The
authorities rejected the project. The next owner
decided to dismantle the vessel and reconstruct
it in front of his house. After going bankrupt, he
abandoned his unfinished project and sold the
entire property to a group of investors. At the
end of 2011, Fernando Sánchez Castillo bought
the Azor to transform it into a prism-shaped
artwork. The prism is considered an exalted
form in minimalist art due to its constructive
impersonality and lack of sentimental or emotive
references. Some original parts of the yacht were
preserved, such as the mast, deck benches, signs
and cleats.
Presented by
— Art Bärtschi & Cie, Geneva
Fernando Sánchez Castillo (1970,
Madrid, Spain) holds a degree in
Fine Arts from the Complutense
University of Madrid and a Master in
Philosophy and Aesthetics from Madrid
University. He took part in Programme
de recherche at the École nationale
supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris
and the Rijksakademie van Beeldende
Kunsten in Amsterdam. A member of
the sceptical post-Franco generation
in Spain, Fernando Sánchez Castillo
questions the relationships between
art and power, public spaces and
collective memory. He has participated
in collective exhibitions at the Tate
Modern, London; MoMA, New York;
and the 50th Biennale di Venezia. He
also presented his work in solo shows
at the Centro de Arte Contemporáneo
de Málaga (2011), Centre d’Art
Contemporain Genève (2007), and
MARTa Herford (2006). This year 2015,
he is exhibiting his work in solo shows
at CA2M, Madrid; La Panera, Lleida;
and Bohusläns Museum, Uddevalla. He
will also participate in group exhibitions
in Switzerland, Holland, Germany and
Italy. Sánchez Castillo lives and works in
Madrid.