Casassola Biography
Raúl Muñoz Casassola was born in 1982 in Móstoles , Madrid. From a very young age, he was drawn to the countercultural atmosphere that developed in working-class neighborhoods during the 1980s and 1990s, and especially to urban movements such as graffiti and punk music.
In the late 1990s, he began experimenting with wall painting, both as a self-taught artist and during nights out with graffiti artists . He moved to Talavera de la Reina and began his studies in artistic ceramics, while also gaining his first exposure to other types of contemporary art forms, developing a taste for a more classical aesthetic.
The artistic restlessness and the "orderly chaos" he experienced in the following years led him to move to different cities, probably seeking a constant evolution in his intuitive perception of reality, more akin to a scream, conceptually close to his beginnings in punk. For this reason, he doesn't hesitate to sign with different nicknames, pursuing anonymity that allows him to experiment in other artistic disciplines.
In 2011, he moved back to Madrid, where he began his studies in Fine Arts at the Complutense University. Along with other artists and cultural managers, he founded "Sin Ánimo de Nombre," an "artistic and cultural collective born with the idea of joining forces to produce artistic work." He currently works as a cultural manager and curator on various projects.
In 2013, continuing her training, she attended the curatorial workshop "Who, How and Where" taught by Tania Pardo and assisted by Rafael Doctor, Antonio Ballester Moreno and Lucia Casani.
This combination of collective work and broad cultural foundations leads his work to focus on an aesthetic more inclined toward classical and figurative art, touching on social, sentimental, and humanistic themes.
Casassola imbues his imagination with the work of contemporary artists who will define their own style and line: Antonio López , Francis Bacon , the Impressionists, Monet and Pissarro , and classical Renaissance artists such as Rubens or Baroque artists such as Velázquez, taking them as an artistic reference to apply to his work, whether in mural painting, art galleries or museums.
If Casassola previously created his work from a personal impulse , from this period onwards we can appreciate a significant evolution in the artist, generated from the study and the most vindictive and profound reflection that coexists within him.
In the artist's words:
“I've been making art for as long as I can remember. I'm interested in everything that has to do with the human odyssey. I embrace with equal curiosity the excessive passions of first loves and the implicit tragedy of soup kitchens.”
His participation in numerous group exhibitions and urban art projects has led him to visit different countries where his work is increasingly appreciated.
In 2014 he was invited to the Dakar Biennial , where he participated as an urban artist in the Medina district of Dakar and in the collective exhibition “Dak'Art” at the legendary Senegalese gallery Espace Medina.
In 2015 , his project "Incipiens" was selected by the Córdoba City Council as part of Color Urban Sur, a European project organized by El Arsenal, a space for the creation and dissemination of culture, art, and knowledge.
In 2016 , he was selected for his first solo exhibition, “Ciudad Anónima” at the CEART museum in Fuenlabrada, and was selected as a muralist to participate in Muros Tabacalera, a cultural project that recovers the walls of the outer perimeter of the courtyard of the Tabacalera building.
His pictorial installation “Through The Looking-Glass” is awarded and exhibited at Mulafest 16 and he is selected by PalomArt to participate in the international exhibition of emerging art The Change , at the PAN Palazzo delle Arti Napoli.
Casassola currently lives in Madrid, although he continues to work continuously on the ground around the world.
ARTISTIC CURRICULUM
CASASSOLA
represented exclusively by DDR ART GALLERY
MOST RELEVANT EXHIBITIONS.
2020
FIG Bilbao.
Urban Art Mural Intervention, Valladolid.
2019 -
FIG Bilbao , International Fair of Engraving and Works on Paper. Live intervention, live painting action, part of the Fair's Official Program .
2018·-
CamprovinArte . Camprovin, La Rioja. Wurth Foundation Award for best urban mural.
Artaerorap . La Bañeza, León. Urban Intervention.
Librarte , artist's book fair, Burgos.
2017 -
“Very artistic” urban intervention in Toledo, winning the award for best mural.
We Art Fair, Centro Conde Duque. (Best Artist Award, WE ARE FAIR Fair.·” Madrid
“Latidos” collective exhibition, “ Hybrid” Madrid
FAC Art Fair
2016-
“The Change” Group exhibition. Curator: Antonio Palumba. PAN Palazzo delle Arti Napoli , Naples Italy.
Mulafest. Madrid “Through the Looking-Glass” Installation awarded within the BURN Call.
“MurosTabacalera” Urban intervention on the exterior of Tabacalera Madrid. Organized by Madrid Street Art Project and the Ministry of Culture.
“Anonymous City” Solo exhibition at the CEART Museum in Fuenlabrada, Madrid.
2015 -
“Color urbansur” European project organized by “El Arsenal” and the City Council of Córdoba.
“Iberencontros” International meeting of artists and cultural managers in Castelo Branco, Portugal. Urban art intervention.
2014
“Dak'Art. Dakar Biennale” Group exhibition. Commissioner: MoussaTraore. Gallery: Espace Medina . (Dakar, Senegal) within the Dakar contemporary art biennial.·
“Xeex” urban art intervention in the Medina district (Dakar, Senegal). Curator: Nicolás de la Carrera, as part of the Off Biennial of Contemporary Art in Dakar.
Artistic Training.
2011 “Degree in Fine Arts”, Complutense University, Madrid
2014 “Graphic design of multimedia editorial products” Madrid
2013 “WHO, HOW and WHERE”
Curatorial workshop, with Tania Pardo , Rafael Doctor , Antonio Ballester Moreno , Lucia Casani.
2012 “Artist Groups - Associative Experiences”
Workshop. Speaking in Art, Ramp Project,
Menosuno Space, Midday Chica, Interchange, Noestudio.
2012 “The Poem: Instructions for Use” with José María Parreño Madrid
