Julia, by the artist Jaume Plensa, will remain in Madrid’s Plaza de Colón until December 2026. In view of the importance that the sculpture has acquired as an icon of the Madrid landscape and its warm reception by the public, the Fundación María Cristina Masaveu Peterson has agreed to the new extension requested by the city council, which contemplates a further extension until the end of 2027.

Commissioned by the Foundation as part of its art patronage programme, Julia is a unique work of art that forms part of the Fundación María Cristina Masaveu Peterson Art Collection. Twelve metres high and made of polyester resin and white marble dust, the sculpture represents a woman’s head with closed eyes. To ensure that it remains in optimal conditions, the work will undergo conservation between April and June 2026. Madrid Destino, as the party responsible for the public space in which the sculpture stands, will coordinate the entire operational, technical and administrative process, while the Fundación María Cristina Masaveu Peterson will act as financial sponsor of the treatment. The measure forms part of the joint commitment to ensure that Julia is preserved in optimal conditions for the duration of its exhibition in the city.

The Fundación María Cristina Masaveu will cover the related costs and Madrid Destino, the party responsible for the public space, will take care of all the operational, technical and administrative details.

The patronage initiative launched by the FMCMP in 2018 gave Jaume Plensa, winner of the Velázquez Plastic Arts Award in 2013, his first opportunity to exhibit a work of this nature in Spain. For the artist, Julia represents the part of the body that contains knowledge and human emotions. As he says, “They always have closed eyes because what interests me is what is inside the head. As if the viewer standing in front of my work could conceive of it as a mirror and see themselves reflected in it, closing their own eyes and trying to understand all the beauty we conceal within us”.

This focus of calm and introspection that Julia represents, as many local media reports have pointed out, has continued to modify the perception of the urban environment. It demands tranquillity and reflection, demonstrating how art can provide encouragement and hope in challenging times.

Jaume Plensa (Barcelona, 1955) is an artist of materials, sensations and ideas. His references include literature, poetry, music and thought.

He considers himself to be a sculptor primarily, although his creative process has explored multiple disciplines. His works address what it means to be human: our physical and spiritual essence, our self- awareness and awareness of the past, our moral codes and dogmas, and our relationship with nature.

Jaume Plensa studied at the Llotja School of Art and Design and the Sant Jordi School of Fine Arts. Since 1980, the year of his first exhibition in Barcelona, he has lived and worked in Germany, Belgium, England, France and the United States. He currently resides in Barcelona. Although he regularly exhibits in galleries and museums across Europe, the United States and Asia, he develops the vast majority of works for public spaces. Spain, France, Japan, England, Korea, Germany, Canada, the United States and China are some of the countries that host permanent installations of his works. He has taught at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris and regularly cooperates with the School of the Art Institute of Chicago as a guest professor. He has also given numerous lectures and
run courses at universities, museums and cultural institutions around the world.

www.jaumeplensa.com