Juan De Andrés Arias (Santa Cruz de la Zarza, Toledo, 1990) is an artist and researcher based in Madrid. He is currently developing his doctoral thesis at the Faculty of Fine Arts, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), supported by a predoctoral contract from the Community of Madrid. His thesis, titled Visual Archaeology of the Digital Present (2010–2020): Subjectivity Production through Artistic Practices, is supervised by Aurora Fernández Polanco and Rut Martín Hernández.
With a background in Fine Arts (URJC), he furthered his studies with a Master's in Art and Creation Research (UCM), presenting the project The Return of the Author: Artists as Corporations. Over the course of his career, he has received accolades such as First Prize at the XXXVIII Muestra de Arte Joven de La Rioja and participated in the XXXIV Edition of Circuitos de Artes Plásticas de la Comunidad de Madrid.
His projects have been exhibited in venues including CentroCentro —where he has also conducted workshops—, the Sala de Arte Joven of the Community of Madrid, the Museo de La Rioja, and the Academia de España in Rome. He has balanced his artistic practice with teaching roles at the TAI University School of Arts and Universidad Complutense de Madrid.
His research interests lie in the intersections of digitalization within platform capitalism and subjectivity production in relation to labor across physical-digital environments. This focus stems from his experience as an Apple Employee for over ten years, a role he maintained alongside his artistic and academic training. His research has been published in journals such as Re-visiones, EXIT, and Anales de la Historia del Arte. He also curates the Instagram account @archivo.archivo, which specializes in contemporary art and boasts over 11,000 followers.
2020 — Present
PhD Candidate in Fine Arts — Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM)
Dissertation: Visual Archaeology of the Digital Present (2010-2020): Subjectivity Production through Artistic Practices
Supervised by Dr. Aurora Fernández Polanco and Dr. Rut Martín Hernández
2017 — 2018
Master’s in Research in Art and Creation — Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM)
Thesis: The Return of the Author: Artists as Corporations
Supervised by Dr. Aurora Fernández Polanco
2012 — 2016
Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts — Rey Juan Carlos University (URJC), Madrid
Final Project: Ineffable Portraits with Wittgenstein as a Pretext
Supervised by Dr. Eduardo Blázquez Mateos
2024
- Art and Design Shaken by AI — Exhibition Hall, Faculty of Fine Arts, Universidad Complutense de Madrid — Curated by Santiago Morilla, Rut Martín Hernández, Ignacio Rodríguez, and Lidia Benavides
2023
- XXXIV Circuitos de Artes Plásticas — Sala de Arte Joven, Community of Madrid, Madrid — Curated by Tolo Cañellas
- Young Art Exhibition of La Rioja — Museo de La Rioja, Logroño
- Not Only What, But Also How — Embassy of Spain in Washington, Cultural Office — Curated by Marta Ramos-Yzquierdo
- Everything Else — CentroCentro, Madrid — Curated by Andrea Pacheco, et al.
2022
- Granja S. Rafael — Alimentación 30, Madrid — Curated by Valeria Maculan
- Taking the House — Royal Spanish Academy in Rome — Curated by Marta Ramos-Yzquierdo
- XXV Art Exhibition El Brocense — Sala El Brocense, Badajoz
- Dashed Lines — Nave Oporto, Madrid
2021
- Aragon Park — Madrid — Curated by Ángela Jiménez and Marlon de Azambuja
2019
- Nine Artists — Factoría de Arte y Desarrollo, Madrid
2023
- XXXIV Circuitos de Artes Plásticas of the Community of Madrid
- Pre-doctoral Research Training Contract — Community of Madrid
- First Prize — XXXVIII Young Art Exhibition of La Rioja
- Selected for the XXV Art Exhibition Sala El Brocense (Badajoz)
2014
-
Munde Scholarship for studies at the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico
2024
- Encuentros en la 5ª — Faculty of Geography and History, Universidad Complutense de Madrid — Lecture: Research through Artistic Practices: Artists in Situated Research
- Roundtable on The Origin of Forms by Cristina Garrido — Centro de Arte 2 de Mayo — Panelists: Estrella de Diego, Montserrat Moliner, Cristina Garrido
2023
- 1st International Congress on Artistic Practices and Contemporary Knowledge Forms in the Imaginaries of the Technosphere — Complutense University of Madrid — Lecture: Visual Archaeology of Rider Subjectivity.
- Invertebrados: Critical Thinking Sessions on Aesthetics, Culture, and Contemporary Art — Logroño, La Rioja
- Hacer Tesis / Hacer Universidad — Complutense University of Madrid