One of the adjectives that could be attributed to Juan Díaz-Faes' work is the "horror vacui" so characteristic of his swirling characters. Having black as a monochrome does not prevent him from achieving it in its maximum splendour and with no surface that resists it, from concrete to a skateboard. But where does this style really come from?

Aristotelian physicists argued during the scientific revolution of the 17th century that: nature abhors a vacuum

The concept of Horror Vacui (fear of emptiness) was not born in the world of art but in the world of philosophy and science. When Aristotelian physicists argued during the scientific revolution of the 17th century that: nature abhors a vacuum. To reach this conclusion they made all sorts of analyses, among which they established that the cosmos abhors a vacuum, and that even the darkness between the galaxies, empty in appearance, is actually occupied by all sorts of subatomic junk. Or that there were certain parts of the world that were more afraid of the void than others. The biggest difference was between Paris and Chamonix.

In the Baroque, Horror Vacui came to be considered a style, and was a key element in architecture, literature, sculpture and music. It was created to "defeat" the void. The best examples are to be found in Baroque churches, in Byzantine luxury art, in Islamic decoration, in Rococo and in Victorian interior design.

The Horror Vacui manifests itself, then, through its symptom, which we can summarise as the tendency to fill in any empty space. In this regard, Professor Lugano highlights the existence of a kind of emotional Horror Vacui, i.e. an atrocious fear of the blank spaces in life.

When someone is confronted with one of those blank spaces in life. What do they usually do? Younger people turn to technology. The older ones turn to nostalgia

"Human beings have a natural tendency towards Horror Vacui. Look at the frenzy that breaks out when someone is confronted with one of those blank spaces in life. What do they usually do? Younger people turn to technology, checking statuses and updates that look remarkably similar to each other. The older ones turn to nostalgia."