What are these three women doing in the SEA?

Within the platform of Rural Women Artists (MAR, mujeresartistasrurales.es) created in Aragon last winter there are affiliates of all ages and origins. The only requirement to enter it is to formally reside in Aragon and be over 18 years of age. The field of artistic and/or artisan expression is as vast as the number of activities that can be framed under this conceptual umbrella. The common denominator to all of them, beyond their level of professionalism, is divided between talent and enthusiasm.

Nadia Pastor Torrens lives in Los Ramones, Olba district (Teruel) and is 34 years old. “She lived in Barcelona, ​​but in Olba I have family roots and a home. The city is a jungle of extreme competition; It didn't seem like the best place to develop myself artistically, I didn't want to get into that dynamic. I decided to come to town and initially focused on work related to the mountains and nature, but my back complained and I understood that it was time to focus on what I had studied, graphic design. I am still linked to work in nature, I make interpretive tables of flora and fauna for routes, I mark family trails for various town halls, but in the artisan theme I usually do signage, print T-shirts and set up stalls in markets, separate commissions. I take out an annual calendar with illustrations; I will present that of 2022 shortly. In addition, in Los Pertegaces, which is also part of Olba, a social venue has been set up for exhibitions and I am going to open it for the first time. MAR is a great idea and I love being a part of it. On Instagram I can be reached as @ene_de_nadia, by the way”.

Paula, a gem

Paula Jiménez Yera lives in Magallón, her town, she is 44 years old and began experimenting with jewelry 20 years ago in a private school in Zaragoza. “I worked there for a while and then I changed sectors, but I never gave up making jewelry. Later I returned to study Fine Arts, in Teruel, and finished my studies in Valencia, where I updated my training in jewelry adopting a more contemporary tone. I returned to my town in 2019, and here I am. I move through my website, paulalayera.com, I visit fairs and I move my creations through different events and exhibitions, in two lines: one more commercial, with silver as the main raw material, and another more artistic, where I dare with found objects, wood, glass and gems, applying experimental techniques. The MAR philosophy hooked me from the beginning, I already knew some of the affiliates and I would love to tackle a common project”.

Yolanda, stained glass athlete

Yolanda Badía is from Banastás, six kilometers from Huesca, and has turned 50 in 2021. Art aside, she is an athlete of planetary stature; she was the world champion in the veteran's 400 meter dash six years ago. “I started working on leaded stained glass 22 years ago, then I moved on to restoration work and I'm still doing both. I opened a door in Huesca, in a place that was too small for me, and the truth is that I preferred the rural environment. In Banastás my father was a baker, and my parents still live here; I found an old house that I could renovate, and it worked.

Yolanda constantly renews her love for stained glass. "I have opened up to new techniques, and by demand, restoration and manufacturing courses have also emerged for very diverse groups, including children and the disabled. I am setting up another workshop in France, a renovated farm next to Bagneres de Luchon, and I am very hooked on the I am currently interested in recycling glass, I make roses and snow flowers that have worked very well, now I am working with a skylight for a private home: You can see what I do at vitraleshuesca.com, or on my Instagram profile, @yolibadia”.