Spanish poet and artist Juana Dolores transforms love into a force of opposition in the exhibition 'Declaration of Love to Lenin' at the La Virreina Center for the Arts in Barcelona, which runs until November 1.

The artist places love at the heart of contemporary political and cultural debate, in an attempt to highlight the relationship between love, politics, and revolution. She also emphasizes the revolutionary potential of love, separating it from the emotional readings traditionally associated with bourgeois culture, so that it can regain its most popular, rebellious, and transformative dimension.

The artist has revived the revolutionary and rebellious potential of love, a political concept that cultural history has linked to the bourgeoisie, and which today is under a new siege by the perceptions of the urban middle class.

Spanish artist Juana Dolores - elpais.com

Turning to Lenin, or even reading his writings, seems outdated today, given that he and the revolution he was one of its most prominent leaders belong to a past that no longer exists—the name given to the past when one wishes to declare its death. But Juana Dolores's poetry and plays attempt to strip away the ideology imposed by capitalism on any revolutionary impulse, and to historicize the rules and systems of love from a retrospective perspective.

The exhibition represents the relationship between politics and aesthetics, the historical construction of femininity, and the portrayal of love, desire, and arousal. Through a proposal that combines cinema, installation, and documentary materials, the film 'Declaration of Love to Lenin' (2026), produced by the La Virreina Image Centre, forms the centerpiece of the exhibition. The film is 26 minutes and 38 seconds long, and interacts with two other works by the artist: 'First Self-Portrait' and 'History of My Class Consciousness'.

The tour is complemented by a wealth of archival materials and a selection of personal publications that form an intellectual map of the artist's world, enriching the references that run through the project.

In recent years, Dolores has established herself as one of the most prominent artistic voices in the Catalan scene. She is an actress, playwright, director, poet, and video artist, developing a multidisciplinary practice that combines literature, performance, video essays, and sound art.

Her theatrical works are characterized by a constant desire to transcend linguistic boundaries and integrate critical thinking into the artistic process.

In the literary field, Dolores has published two poetry collections: 'Bijuteria', winner of the Amadeu Oller Prize in 2020, and 'I SI UNA NACIÓ DESFALANT PER UNA CATIFA VERMELLA' (elegy in Catalan) (2023).