Carlos Herraiz’s body of work focuses on experimentation with urban elements through painting and installation. By intertwining lived experiences, the passage of time, and questions inherent to the human condition, these themes recur throughout his practice. From this standpoint, he reflects on the (mis)uses of communication within contemporary society.
Born in Barcelona in 1995, Herraiz moved to Edinburgh at the age of eighteen to begin his artistic studies at the Leith School of Art. It was during this period that a series of concerns emerged around the enigma of human relationships. Through painting, he began to explore these ideas while studying at the Glasgow School of Art and later at the Barcelona Academy of Art.
He has been a grant-supported artist-in-residence at the Leith School of Art, as well as in Kavala (Greece), Berlin (Germany), and East London (South Africa). His work has been presented at international art fairs such as Festival Concéntrico, Swab Barcelona Art Fair, and ARCO Lisboa (with BETA Gallery, Barcelona), alongside solo and group exhibitions in Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Barcelona, most notably the solo exhibitions Nomeolvides, curated by Vanesa Peña Alarcón, and Muda at BETA Gallery, as well as in Berlin and East London.
In his current practice, Carlos continues to open new avenues of exploration through the body and performance, following the completion of the Postgraduate Program in Body and Art at Alas, Barcelona (2023–2024).
Education
2023 Arte y Cuerpo Postgraduate, Alas en Movimiento, Barcelona
2021 Foundation of Art Therapy (intensive course), Metàfora, Barcelona
2019 Graduate Residency, Leith School of Art, Edinburgh
2018 Painting and Drawing Programe, Barcelona Academy of Art, Barcelona
2016 Painting and Printmaking, Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow
2015 Painting Course, Leith School of Art, Edinburgh
2015 Drawing Course, Leith School of Art, Edinburgh
2014 Foundation Course, Leith School of Art, Edinburgh
Solo Exhibitions
2024 NOMEOLVIDES, Beta, Barcelona
2023 MUDA, Beta, Barcelona
2021 SURCOS, Galería H2O, Barcelona
2021 DE/CONSTRUCTION, SomoS, Berlín
2020 INTROS, Fireflies Gallery
2020 SPECTRUM, Fireflies Gallery
2019 RASTROGRAFÍAS, Pasaje Montoya, Barcelona
2019 BLURRED BOUNDARIES, Mafic Space, Barcelona
2018 AUSENCIAS, I Am Not Dead, Barcelona
2017 AQUELLO QUE SE PUEDE EXPLICAR, ¿PARA QUÉ PINTARLO?, BoxBarcelona, Barcelona
Selected Group Exhibitions
2023 CONCÉNTRICO 09, Design and Architecture International Festival, Logroño
2020 XXVI PAINTING PRIZE "CIUTAT D'ALGEMESÍ" Valencia
2020 WORK IN PROCESS SomoS, Berlin
2020 REVISITED SomoS, Berlin
2020 DIAGONALE II Verwalterhaus, Berlin
2019 COLOURS – Refugee exhibition – Out of the Blue Drill Hall, Edinburgh
2019 Graduate Residency final show – St. James Centre- Edinburgh
2019 Teorema Festival – Amuleto Gallery, Barcelona
2018 Misnoma – Mau Mau, Barcelona
2017 BoxBarcelona Exhibition Opening– BoxBarcelona, Barcelona
2016 Let’s Limbo – SWG3, Glasgow
2016 PAT TESTED – Grace and Clark Fyfe Gallery; The McLellan Galleries, GSA, Glasgow
2016 PAINTERS IN PROGRESS Old Hairdressers, Glasgow
2016 Savoy Centre Gallery – Glasgow
2016 Grace & Clark Fyfe Gallery – Glasgow
2015 Leith School of Art Summer Exhibition, Edimburgh
Grants and Residences
2021 - 2022 Driftwood Studios residency, South Africa
2020 - 2021 Graduate Artist at SomoS Art Space, Berlin
2019 Petra Air Residencia, Kavala, Greece
2018 - 2019 Graduate Residency (Scolarship) – Leith School of Art
2020 XXVI Painting Prize “Ciutat d’Algemesí, Short Listed
2016 Richard Ford Award Short Listed
2015 Spoon Prize – Leith School of Art