About us
THE NATURE OF THE PROJECT: A BREATHING ARCHIVE
They say a collection is the only place where time stands still, but here we believe the exact opposite: a collection must be alive. El Taller del Coleccionista is not a typical gallery; it is an archive in motion, a space of transit where artworks reclaim their voice before finding their definitive place.
Far from the noise of the mass market, we conceive this space as a study cabinet open to the world. Here, neither fleeting trends nor the rigidity of a single era prevail. Our selection is deliberately eclectic—from 19th-century engravings to contemporary avant-garde—because our common thread is not style, but narrative. We understand each piece not as a decorative object, but as a historical testament that deserves to be read, cared for, and transmitted.
We do not seek mere accumulation. Our work is that of temporary custodians who preserve the history of the artwork until it passes into the next hands.
THE ORIGIN: THE HUMANISTIC GAZE
Behind this selection is me, Joel Mejías.
My approach to art was never that of a dealer, but rather that of someone who needs to understand the world through its objects. My humanistic background shaped that curious gaze: I was always less interested in superficial beauty than in the historical context that made it possible. I specialized in the functioning of the art market with a single vital purpose: to find a sustainable formula to live permanently surrounded by these stories.
My relationship with artworks is almost obsessive. It stems from the need to possess them, not for the sake of ownership, but for the pleasure of research. I enjoy living with the piece, spending hours observing the brushwork under different lights and delving into libraries to put names and surnames to what I have in front of me.
But although my curiosity has no limits, physical space does. I soon understood that collecting cannot be static. To continue rescuing forgotten pieces and discovering new artists, it is necessary to let go of the previous ones. El Taller del Coleccionista is born from that honesty: I release works from my personal collection—pieces I have already researched, enjoyed, and cataloged—to finance the rescue of the next ones. What you find here is the result of that vital rotation: works validated by time and by the gaze of someone who loved them before you.
THE WORK OF THE WORKSHOP: TIME AS A TOOL
The word "Taller" (Workshop) in our name is no coincidence. It refers to the invisible work that occurs before an artwork sees the light on this website.
The discovery process often begins among the dust of a flea market or in the uncatalogued lot of a remote auction. But acquisition is only the beginning. Many of the works you see here have coexisted with me for months, even years, hanging on my walls or resting in the archive, waiting for their secrets to be revealed.
It is a labor of patience and hours of silent study. I have spent entire nights comparing strokes in old catalogs, deciphering signatures that time had almost completely erased, or tracing the biography of a forgotten artist to restore their name. There is a satisfaction difficult to explain when, after weeks of research, an anonymous work recovers its identity and context. Here we do not simply sell what we find; we sell what we have researched.
OUR CRITERION: TRUTH OVER BEAUTY
In a world obsessed with immediate and decorative aesthetics, our philosophy is radically different: we prefer truth to empty beauty.
The catalog of El Taller del Coleccionista is a reflection of this quest. It functions as an eclectic "Cabinet of Curiosities" where temporal labels lose importance. A meticulous 19th-century engraving can coexist perfectly with a material abstraction from the 70s; the connecting link is not style, but authenticity.
My selection criterion is non-negotiable: I look for works that have specific weight. Often, this means choosing the difficult piece over the pleasant one. I am interested in works that show the scars of their history, sketches that reveal the artist's doubt, or portraits that capture the psychology of an era, even if they are not "pretty" in the conventional sense. We believe that a work of art should not be limited to matching the sofa; it must have the ability to challenge the viewer and transform the space it inhabits.
THE COMMITMENT: A RELAY IN CUSTODY
In the end, this project is about trust and handover. When an artwork leaves El Taller del Coleccionista, it is not a simple commercial transaction; it is a transfer of custody.
Our commitment is that, along with the physical piece, you receive the intangible heritage we have rescued: the history, the context, and the certainty of knowing what may be hanging on your walls. We deliver each work with honesty upfront, sharing both the irrefutable data we have found and any unknowns that may still surround it, because transparency is the only form of respect we conceive for the collector and for the artwork itself.
My rescue work ends when the piece reaches your hands. From that moment on, the story ceases to be mine and begins to be yours.
Welcome to El Taller del Coleccionista.