SPANISH, 1974
Toni Garau (Sóller, Mallorca 1974) is a recognized contemporary artist who, moved by the history of the textile industry in his hometown and the revolution it brought about, has sought to pay tribute to an entire generation of workers – both women and men – who, through their effort and dedication, turned the town of Sóller into a prosperous and hopeful city.

Garau's work is a reinterpretation of the use of a material with a history: thread, transforming it into the main element of a collection of artworks. Simultaneously, a portion of Mallorca's history is presented, artistically extending into the present moment. The last decades of the 19th century and the early 20th century marked a period of profound transformations in Sóller, driven by the establishment of multiple industries, mostly created initially to meet domestic consumption needs but also for export. Sóller's isolated position from the rest of the island and the presence of a commercial port further encouraged local entrepreneurs to initiate various businesses and industries, ranging from textile factories to electricity companies, and the construction of a railway.

Garau reinterprets this industrial past in the form of art; using threads, he immerses us in the collective memory and history of a town in the Serra de Tramuntana of Mallorca, bringing to life a material that was once dormant.