After Miguel Soro left his professional cycling career, he started reflecting his passion for cycling by creating artwork based on pure realism. His handwork will be seen during the 70th edition of the Volta Ciclista a la Comunitat Valenciana Gran Premi Banc Sabadell, as he will be responsible for creating the trophies for the winners.

Let's get to know little more about this artist from Xativa.

What theme have you thought for the VCV trophies?

The main style will be based on classic cycling. Sincerely, I have not thought of any specific cyclist to whom to dedicate my artwork. My idea is to use various cycling aspects and motives in general, still life pictures of cycling, details of a bicycle, etc. I’m aiming to produce artwork that can be adapted to any cyclist, so that anyone participating in the VCV would like to hang it up on their wall at home. In order to present a different type of trophy for each stage, I will work on various ideas, including different motives, but always maintaining the essence of classic cycling.

How do you feel about this task, the fact that the organisation approached you to create the trophies for the 70th edition of VueltaCV?

I'm very thrilled about this opportunity and I think the outcome will be stunning. Having the possibility to apply artistic aspects to the trophy will make it different from the rest of the trophies, and this is a great challenge for me. At least the outcome will not be a typical trophy, and I hope all the cyclists will appreciate this detail. As a former cyclist I know that at the end the trophies start to accumulate to different corners at home, and with some exceptions, during the time the charm of them starts to fade.

This opportunity has perfect timing in my artistic career since for this year (2019) I am preparing several international exhibitions. Events such as the Tour de France or the 100th anniversary celebration of Fausto Coppi, both in Bellas Artes museums, not forgetting other classical cycling races like the Tour de Flanders or the Paris Roubaix.

Collage is the main technique of your artwork, will this style be used for the VCV trophies as well?

As pointed out correctly, my main work technique is collage. I’m inspired to use this technique while working, as each of the articles or photos that I insert in the work has a message about cycling. I will be using this same technique for the VCV trophies. I will create one original art piece, from which numbered reproductions can me made for trophies. My idea is to make exclusive reproductions only, delivered solely to VCV.

What made you leave cycling and dedicating yourself to the world of painting?

Cycling is a very demanding sport with short career perspectives while at the top level. Let's say it’s a profession for a few years only. I started practicing this sport from cycling schools, and therefore I was able to enjoy cycling in all categories, including three years as a professional cyclist. In my case, I stopped cycling for several reasons, it was a complicated time with not too many teams, and I didn’t find the right motivation either the team to continue.

After leaving cycling I worked on several things, and I dedicated myself to landscape painting as a hobby. One day I decided to put my two passions together, cycling and painting. This combination leads me to what is now the main theme of my work. The beautiful collection of classic cycling art was born and it has taken me to various travels all over the world (Canada, USA, Italy, France). This professional dedication allows me to combine two things very important to me, cycling and art.

Do you still practice cycling?

Currently, I'm still cycling, but at a tempo much more relaxed. I like cycling and I am passionate about the cycling in the old days, that's why I have several bicycles that are more than 100 years old and I tend to participate in retro cycling events like Eroica Hispania, La Pedals de Clip, La Histórica and so on…