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Diana García RoyCerco una scultura che rifletta lo spirito, che esca dal cuore con sincerità".

The Spanish sculptress Diana Garcia Roy is the author of numerous sculptural works of various themes. Her religious work, which is currently much appreciated, can be seen in oratories, chapels and churches in different places.

Maria José Atienza-February 7, 2022-Reading time: 5 minutes
Diana García Roy

Diana García Roy

Madrid, Rome, New York, Uruguay and Cameroon are just some of the places where you can find Diana Garcìa Roy's works.

This young Spanish artist is known above all for her sculpture, but also for other disciplines such as design and painting.

He is the author of works such as the Madonna della Speranza, a Marian statue located in a chapel on a hill above the Uatumà fiume, in the heart of the Amazon jungle. Or the high altar of the parish church of San Manuel Gonzalez in San Sebastian dei Re in Spegna. And many other works of astratect art. Diana Garcia Roy graduated in Fine Arts at the Compplutense University of Madrid, has been dedicated for more than two decades to sculpture.

"I have always had a true and proper inner desire to materialize personal experiences of the places, of the architectural spaces, a passion for telling the beauty that I love around me, sottolinea Diana Garcia Roy.

Little by little he has made his way in the artistic field and today there are many personal and collective exhibitions in which he has taken part.

In these years Diana has received funds for artistic creation from prestigious institutions such as the Casa di Velazquez, the Fondazione Marcelino Botin, the Barta & Partners company and from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the Accademia di Spagna in Rome. "Thanks to these funds and to the projects that have been entrusted to me with trust, I have grown in my personal project".

The permanence in Venanzio Blanco's studio has brought a moment of change in the way of conceiving sculpture and the creative process: "It has changed the way of seeing sculpture. He has introduced me to his true feelings of creativity. I have great admiration for his person and his work".

The artist discovers his creative style as a creation born from his heart: "I try to translate into aesthetic expression the idea I have in my inner self. I use a language that plays with the piano, perhaps more architettonic, but that shows well the human imprint in the executive process. I find a sculpture that reflects the spirit, that reaches out from the heart in a sincere way. That transmits to those who keep it what has left me as a deep way. In short, that it is transcendent, with strength and sensibility".

Among the numerous works and paintings of this artist "are very important to me those commemorating the victims of terrorism and the sculpture dedicated to Miguel Angel Blanco, assassinated by the terrorist group ETA.

"Vedere lo spirito". L'opera di arte sacra

Diana Garcìa Roy says that "little by little the sacred art works, which I have made in many countries, are increasing". And so in oratories and churches in New York, Rome, Argentina and Portorico there are works of this young Spanish sculptress.

What is sacred art for an artist who dedicates part of his work to this encounter between God and man from art? Diana Garcia Roy answers that it is about "seeing the spirit". The sculptor argues that figurative art is not always synonymous with good sacred art: "E' necessario un minimo di figurativo per potersi elevare a partire proprio da questo. It is true, but it is not necessary to stay too much on the aesthetic level, on the appearance. It is about taking a step forward: to see the spirit that is inside, to find its inner strength, its transcendent expression, to discover the origin of the sacredness of a certain figure and to find the way to express it. It is a great challenge, not easy at all".

There is an aspect on which the idea of the sculptress is in conflict with that of the painter and sculptor Antonio Lopez, who, despite his hyper realism, differs from the concept that religious art must focus on the religious and dimenticare in a certain sense the "art" (cfr Omnes n° 711). According to Garcia Roy "Just as prayer puts us in connection with God, sacred art must take us by the hand and lead us to the same end. It must transmit a transcendence, a spirituality that elevates the soul".

Among her religious works, the execution of the altarpiece of the Spanish parish church of San Manuel Gonzales was a real challenge for this artist. The panel, about 12 meters high, is composed of 7 panels of four meters each, distributed in three orders.

Diana sottolinea che "the altar of the parish of St. Manuel Gonzalez has been a great challenge in which I have learned a lot". For a catholic and practicing artist, taking part in the construction of God's house is always a great responsibility. For Diana "What has been most edifying for me personally is to have had the pleasure of doing something creative in the service of God, an accompaniment in the area of the Eucharistic tabernacle. And I have found that, with my work, I can help people to pray".

Un volto che porta a Dio

How do you choose the size of a statue of the Madonna or of a crucifix? Garcia Roy answers that it is not merely "artistic" but "artistic".I try to convey the spiritual sense of my experiences through the sculptural medium. I don't pretend to define the Madonna's or Gesù's volto. It would be pretentious on my part and I believe it would not help. By approaching beauty I try to decontestualize the volts, idealize them in such a way that they become a timeless, spiritual beauty, avoiding to look at a person from the living. I search for that will that moves in the most intimate and brings us to God.

Sulla dimensione dell'arte sacra Diana ha le idee chiare: "My great challenge is to reach the heart of man and to invite him to conversion. To find, starting from faith, a way to express the beauty of God in a way that deeply touches and transforms our hearts.

Hoshi. The stella

One of the projects currently in progress has been battezzato with the name of Hoshi. Con questo concetto Diana Garcia Roy "it calls the work of many years: important projects and sculptures of sacred art".

Attraverso Hoshi "I intend to give visibility and facilitate the purchase of the reproductions that I make in short format, in which many people have been interested for a long time. The idea is to create a new opera, extending the variety and offering the contact for new incarcerations. Sono opere appropriate tanto per la casa che per il giardino, e anche per una chiesa..." which will be available on the website from next spring, but will also be available on Instagram and Facebook.

The choice of the name is not accidental. Hoshi" means "stella" in giapponese and "Diana" in giapponese. "He wants to place this print under the protection of the Madonna. She is the Stella of the morning, the Stella of the East. And because I have always been attracted to Japanese art, I chose this language for the name of the site".

Each piece is a unique piece for Diana Garcia Roy, whether it is part of the collection of astratect art or the works of sacred art that she has modeled with her hands in recent years. Today, as today, she does not have a preference for any particular work: "ognuna ha la sua storia, le circostanze che l'hanno accompagnata, per tutte ho grande amore. E' vero che ce ne sono alcune che mi piacciono più di altre, la quelle che mi interessano di più sono quelle che ho ho nella mente, nel cuore, e che sto desiderando di plasmarle nella materia."

Just as he does not prefer one of his own works, he does not prefer other works, but he appreciates many of them, especially the ones that "con la loro bellezza mi conquistano, mi entrano dentro elevando lo spirito".

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