DOCSLIB.ORG

Eduardo Chillida. Echoes

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Eduardo Chillida. Echoes Eduardo Chillida. Echoes Eduardo Chillida. Echoes is a survey show conceived especially for the reopening of Chillida Leku. Curated by Ignacio Chillida and the museum’s research team, the exhibition features over 90 works, tracing the artist’s output from the late forties, a time when he engaged with figuration, until 2000, embracing his discovery of iron and following the development of his highly personal language. Eduardo Chillida. Echoes features works in iron, granite, alabaster, plaster and paper, and includes important series such as Gravitaciones (sculptures in paper lending particular importance to relief and void) as well as Lurras and Óxidos (works in chamotte clay). Besides works from the Estate of Eduardo Chillida, many pieces in this opening exhibition, some of which have rarely been seen before, are on loan from museums, institutions and private collections. This is the case, for instance, of major iron sculptures such as Deseoso (Wishful) (1954, Fundación La Caixa) and Del plano oscuro (1956, Fundación ICO, on deposit at Museo Reina Sofía), as well as several exceptional works like Hierros de temblor (Trembling Irons) (1957); Yunque de sueños VII (Anvil of Dreams) (1959) and Buscando la luz III (Searching for Light III) (1997). In order to better contextualize the works, the exhibition is expanded with photos, original manuscripts, letters and catalogues from the artist’s early years, carefully selected from the Eduardo Chillida Archive, which is also conserved at the museum. Eduardo Chillida. Ecos. Exhibition view Photo: Gonzalo Machado Barrio Jauregi 66 +34 943 335 963 20120 Hernani, Gipuzkoa [email protected] www.museochillidaleku.com Oyarak I (Echoes I) (1954). Iron, 174 x 48 x 42 cm Photo: Claude Gaspari The title of the exhibition is borrowed from Oyarak I (Echoes I), an iron sculpture from 1954 on view on the ground floor of the museum. The word “echoes” resonates with the idea of repetition, core to Chillida’s practice and a focal point for series exploring one single concept. “Echoes” also brings to mind the sonic quality of the sculptor’s work, materialising sounds that reverberate in space. The exhibition is conceived chronologically, leading visitors on a journey through the artist’s life and work. The walkthrough is divided into different phases, largely delineated by the materials and techniques used in each one, as reflected in the names of the sections: 1948-1951 Paris, first sculptures in plaster; Return to the Basque Country: first sculptures in iron; Ilarik and Yunques de sueño; Sculptures in alabaster, light and architecture; Lurrak and Óxidos; Public projects; and Work on paper: drawings, collages, engravings and Gravitaciones. In addition to the exhibition, the series Peine del Viento (The Comb of the Wind) is also on view, one of the artist’s most iconic creations. In fact, this series is earmarked as the first collectible following the reopening of the museum. Barrio Jauregi 66 +34 943 335 963 20120 Hernani, Gipuzkoa [email protected] www.museochillidaleku.com 1948-1951 Paris, first sculptures in plaster The opening section of the exhibition explores Chillida’s beginnings as a sculptor. During this period, he worked mainly with plaster, a material he preferred over other modelling techniques as it enabled him to sculpt in consonance with his personal way of working. His sculptures from this time almost seem to emerge whole from blocks of dry plaster. These early figurative works, made in Paris, still rely on the depiction of the human figure, which the artist also rendered in drawings. Works like Forma (Shape), Torso (Torso), Concreción (Concretion) and Yacente (Recumbent), among others, are good examples of this phase in his practice. However, there are very few remaining works from this early period as the vast majority were broken on the train journey during the artist’s return to the Basque Country in 1951. Return to the Basque Country: first sculptures in iron The return to his home country was also a turning point for Eduardo Chillida’s future as a sculptor. In his search for a path and vision of his own, the sculptor came across a forge in Hernani where he discovered the potential of iron for his work, which from then on would become his preferred material. The darkness of the forge itself, the range of colours of the incandescent iron and the one-on-one struggle with the material would become integral to his work. Chillida then began to work directly with iron without welding it; instead, he would bend and curve the material whilst it was still hot. The fire and the material itself would condition his work as a sculptor. This was the moment when the artist became concerned with the notion of space – here, the tension in shaping the iron created a dialogue with its surroundings. And so, during the working process, Chillida began to intuit what takes place in empty spaces, reflecting on the hollowed voids created by his forms. Sueño articulado. Homenaje a Gaston Bachelard (Articulated Dream. Homage to Gaston Bachelard) (1958) Hierro, 174 x 48 x 42 cm Photo: Genevieve Hanson Barrio Jauregi 66 +34 943 335 963 20120 Hernani, Gipuzkoa [email protected] www.museochillidaleku.com Detail of Ilarik II (Stele II), 1954. Wood, 141 x 21,4 x 19,2 cm Photo: Stefan Altenburger, Zürich Ilarik and the Anvils of Dreams For Eduardo Chillida, iron had its own music, a sound produced in the forge with the anvil, bellows and hammer. In 1951 he created Ilarik, inspired by Basque funeral steles. Marking a decisive moment in his career, it gave rise to Yunques de sueños (Anvils of Dreams). In this series the works are differentiated by their verticality and by the coupling between the lower part, a categorical piece of solid wood, and the more ethereal and fleeting top part, thus creating a worldly solidness in opposition to the intangible world of dreams. Sculptures in alabaster, light and architecture Up until the mid-sixties, Eduardo Chillida’s work focused primarily on materials closely associated with the Basque Country. However, in 1963 whilst travelling to Greece, Chillida visited many archaeological sites and this trip was to have a profound impact on the artist’s understanding of the rapport between light and sculpture. This is when he first began to use alabaster. Seldom used in twentieth-century sculpture, this material allowed Chillida to capture the “black light” of the Cantabrian Sea, a light that, in the case of alabaster, seems to radiate out of the material itself. A good example can be seen in Gurutz VIII (Cross VIII), in which Chillida excavated the alabaster, making the cross appear from the emptied space. Barrio Jauregi 66 +34 943 335 963 20120 Hernani, Gipuzkoa [email protected] www.museochillidaleku.com Lurrak and Óxidos Chillida discovered chamotte clay, or fireclay, in the seventies, at the studio of the ceramist Hans Spinner. Chamotte can be worked in compact blocks, which gave rise to a series of solid clay sculptures that nonetheless possess the same “organic geometry” that can be found in all of his work. Eduardo Chillida’s use of chamotte produced two main series: Lurrak (Basque for “earth”) and Óxidos (Oxides). In Lurrak the sculptor made incisions, carving labyrinthine lines and freeing energy from inside the material. Afterwards, they were fired in a wood-fired kiln, taking on different tonalities depending on how long they were fired, which was usually around twenty hours. Similar to his work with iron, fire is equally critical here, as the artist is partly forced to give up control of the creative process. Meanwhile, the Óxidos showcase a whole repertoire of signs and symbols made with broken or semi- circular lines rendered with incisions. They are fired in an electric kiln with over-saturated oxygen, thus obtaining a more whitish and homogenous tonality Selection of Lurrak (“earths”) and Óxido 42 Photo: Iñigo Santiago Barrio Jauregi 66 +34 943 335 963 20120 Hernani, Gipuzkoa [email protected] www.museochillidaleku.com Public projects Early on in his career Eduardo Chillida started to work on public projects conceived for specific sites in both urban settings and in natural surroundings. For the sculptor, these works were “meeting places”, a term he in fact used as the title of one of his series, although this concept could well be applied to any of Chillida’s monumental works. These sculptures speak to the artist’s concerns surrounding ideas of community, addressing concepts like peace, tolerance and freedom in an abstract sculptural language that looks for answers to universal questions. There are more than forty monumental sculptures by Chillida all over the world, each one defining the place where they are situated. The upper floor of the museum contains an overview of this major facet of Chillida’s output, key to any proper understanding of his philosophy as a sculptor. The Comb of the Wind, its own space at Zabalaga Besides Eduardo Chillida. Echoes, Zabalaga is also showing the series Peine del Viento (The Comb of the Wind) made up of a total of 23 pieces, including eleven sculptures, exploring the central theme of the artist’s Peine del viento XV (The Comb of the Wind); the ensemble of monumental sculptures at the far end of Ondarreta beach in San Sebastián. Variations on an idea and working in series were key to Eduardo Chillida’s practice. The theme of The Comb of the Wind is perhaps the one which most heavily marked his work and which was most enduring over time, spanning almost half a century: from 1952 to 1999. The exhibition will underscore the many variations the series underwent over the passing of time. Today, Peine del viento XV is viewed as an homage to the city of San Sebastián as a place of peaceful coexistence.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Historia Dela Arquitectura Contemporánea Es Pan
    JUAN DANIEL FULLAONDO MARÍA TERESA MUÑOZ HISTORIA DELA ARQUITECTURA CONTEMPORÁNEA ,...,, ES PAN OLA TOMO 111 Y ORFEO DESCIENDE MOLLY EDITORIAL © Juan Daniel Fullaondo © María Teresa Muñoz Prohibida la reproducción total o parcial sin la autorización de los autores. Portada¡ Montaje sobre una fotografía de María Teresa Muñoz (1996). ' . MOLLY EDITORIAL María Teresa Muñoz. c/ Príncipe de Vergara, 117. 28002 Madrid. I.S.B.N.: 84-922708-0-2 Dep. Legal: M-15340-1997 Impreso en España Fotocomposición e impresión: Tecnovic Arte Gráfico, S.L. Antonio Pérez, 8. Tel. 562 56 43. 28002 Madrid a Carlos Flores, a Bruno Zevi, y a José María Sastres 6 ÍNDICE NOTA PREVIA ...................................................................................... 9 PRÓLOGO.............................................................................................. 11 PRIMERA PARTE Los primeros disidentes.................................................................. 19 Seguimos con los primeros disidentes .... .. .. .. .. .. .. .... .. .. .. .. .... .. .. .. .. .. 25 Otras observaciones .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 31 Más notas sobre la primera generación ........................................ 35 José Antonio Coderch . .. .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. 41 Más sobre Coderch . .. .. .. .. 65 Miguel Fisac . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 73 Una cierta, apresurada, recapitulación .. .... .. .. .. .. .... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .... 93 Últimos suspiros teóricos . 99 Algunos comentarios
    [Show full text]
  • Spanish Painting During Developmentism
    Spanish Painting during Developmentism From 1960 on, Spanish art consolidated the ground it had gained over the previous decade, in which informal- ism had managed to make itself noticed on the international scene through official promotion and awards given to artists like Antonio Saura and Antoni Tàpies. At the same time, a more lyrical side emerged, which, along with other members of this generation of varied aesthetic options, would set Cuenca’s Museum of Spanish Abstract Art in motion. tinued with what was called “veta brava” Informalism, international recognition was achieved by artists like Antoni Tàpies (1923-2012), who abandoned surrealist figuration in favour of a material informal- ism, Eduardo Chillida (1924-2002), an example of informalist sculpture, and José Guerrero (1914-1991) Spain’s represent- ative of the New York School. Others such as Fernando Zóbel (1924-1984), Gustavo Torner (1925) and Gerardo Rueda (1926- 1996), went on the form part of the central core of what was called the Cuenca Group, representatives of an abstract form that became known as lyrical. These three art- ists shared a sense of aesthetic perfection In the late Fifties and throughout the Sixties, Spain opened up to what lay beyond Fran- and purity of surfaces, producing reflec- co’s regime, so as to modernise the Spanish economy according to the liberal capitalism tive painting, with a very controlled feeling model, resulting in what were known as the Development Plans. One result of the end of far from spontaneity, thereby producing Spain’s isolation was a prolific period for Spanish art, which came into contact with the something that could be called “fake in- international scene for the first time.
    [Show full text]
  • Spanish Painting During Developmentism
    Spanish Painting during Developmentism From 1960 on, Spanish art consolidated the ground it had gained over the previous decade, in which informal- ism had managed to make itself noticed on the international scene through official promotion and awards given to artists like Antonio Saura and Antoni Tàpies. At the same time, a more lyrical side emerged, which, along with other members of this generation of varied aesthetic options, would set Cuenca’s Museum of Spanish Abstract Art in motion. Along with ex-members of the El Paso group (which broke up in 1960), rep- resented in this room by Antonio Sau- ra (1930-1998) and Manolo Millares (1926-1972), who continued with what was called “veta brava” Informalism, inter- national recognition was achieved by art- ists like Antoni Tàpies (1923-2012), who abandoned surrealist figuration in favour of a material informalism, Eduardo Chillida (1924-2002), an example of informalist sculpture, and José Guerrero (1914-1991) Spain’s representative of the New York School. Others such as Fernando Zóbel (1924-1984), Gustavo Torner (1925) and Gerardo Rueda (1926-1996), went on the In the late Fifties and throughout the Sixties, Spain opened up to what lay beyond Fran- form part of the central core of what was co’s regime, so as to modernise the Spanish economy according to the liberal capitalism called the Cuenca Group, representatives model, resulting in what were known as the Development Plans. One result of the end of of an abstract form that became known as Spain’s isolation was a prolific period for Spanish art, which came into contact with the lyrical.
    [Show full text]
  • Paris, New York and the Basque International Art Community Anna María Guasch and Joseba Zulaika
    1 Paris, New York and the Basque International Art Community Anna María Guasch and Joseba Zulaika At the turn of the 19th century, introduction to modernity meant for Basque artists the expected trip to Paris. Leaving aside Madrid and Rome, it was in Paris where they discovered the true meaning of modernity. This meant a new way of looking at art and life, including the concrete realities of their Basque society and culture. Joaquín de Zuazagoitia put it in these terms: “what provided the tone of Basque painting was that our painters, like the Catalans, stopped going to Madrid and Rome and went to Paris. There they vibrated with the concerns of impressionist painting, and in Paris, through Whistler, Sargent—two Americans—and through Manet, they returned the eyes to the great tradition of Spanish painting. With the eyes educated in Paris, capable of understanding better the Spanish tradition, upon returning they found themselves a country that was theirs, of so salient traits that it would well deserve to represent it. The naturalism of the painting then called modern forced them to abandon the great historic topics and to look at the daily life around them with tender eyes. Thus the most notorious characteristics of Basque painting are its capacity to observe the daily life of the Basque Country—that has been at once its 2 power and its limitation—and a return to Spanish pictorial tradition through the French influence.”1 Here we have a paradigm of how a new “knowledge community” is created: artists need to go to Paris to discover their own Spanish and Basque reality.
    [Show full text]
  • Eduardo Chillida
    Press Release Eduardo Chillida Hauser & Wirth New York, 69th Street 30 April – 27 July 2018 Private view: Monday 30 April, 6 – 8 pm The bird is one of the signs of space, each one of Chillida’s sculptures represents, much like the bird, a sign of space; each one of them says a different thing: the iron says wind, the wood says song, the alabaster says light yet they all say the same thing: space. A rumor of limits, a coarse song; the wind, an ancient name of the spirit, blows and spins tirelessly in the house of space. – Octavio Paz New York… Hauser & Wirth is pleased to present its inaugural exhibition of works by Eduardo Chillida (1924 – 2002), Spain’s foremost sculptor of the twentieth century. Widely recognized for monumental iron and steel public sculptures displayed across the globe, Chillida is also celebrated for a wholly distinctive use of materials such as stone, chamotte clay, and paper to engage concerns both earthly and metaphysical. On view from 30 April through 27 July 2018, this exhibition showcases the artist’s varied and innovative practice through a focused presentation of rarely displayed works, including small-scale sculptures, collages, drawings, and artist books that shed new light on Chillida’s enduring fascination with space and organic form. Originally a student of architecture in Madrid, Chillida created art guided by its principles; his early interest in the field had a lasting impact on his development as an artist, shaping his understanding of spatial relationships and sparking what would become a deep-rooted interest in making space visible through a consideration of the forms surrounding it.
    [Show full text]
  • PRAEMIUM IMPERIALE Pressemappe 2018
    PRESSEMAPPE anlässlich der Bekanntgabe der Preisträger des PRAEMIUM IMPERIALE 2018 am 11. Juli 2018 in Berlin Inhalt: Tagesaktuelle Pressemitteilung Künstlerportraits Fact Sheet: Informationen zum Preis, zum 30-jährigen Bestehen und zu bisherigen Preisträgern Basispressemitteilung: Hintergrund und Geschichte des Preises Sperrfrist: Die Bekanntgabe der designierten Preisträger unterliegt einer Sperrfrist zur Veröffentlichung bis Mittwoch, 11. Juli 2018, 11.00 Uhr. Presse- und Bildmaterial: Die digitale Pressemappe sowie Fotomotive der Preisträger zur redaktionellen Verwendung im Zusammenhang mit PRAEMIUM IMPERIALE 2018 werden mit Ende der Sperrfrist unter diesem Link zu finden sein: http://www.heesch-kommunikation.de/downloads/praemium-imperiale/. Bitte beachten Sie die ebenfalls an dieser Stelle zur Verfügung gestellten bildrechtlichen Nachweise. Videoportraits: Videoportraits der Preisträger (not for broadcast) werden mit Ende der Sperrfrist unter diesem Link zu finden sein: https://www.jaa-pipress.org/german2018 (Login: germany7284) Die digitale Pressemappe in deutscher Sprache steht Ihnen an dieser Stelle ebenfalls zur Verfügung. VNR-Filmmaterial: VNR-Filmmaterial der Preisträger (via USB-Stick) zur redaktionellen Verwendung im Zusammenhang mit PRAEMIUM IMPERIALE 2018 kann im Pressebüro unter presse@heesch- kommunikation.de oder Tel. 030 – 890 61 890 angefordert werden. Pressekontakt PRAEMIUM IMPERIALE HEESCH Kommunikation, Fasanenstraße 13, 10623 Berlin Tel. 030 - 890 61 890, E-Mail: [email protected] Sperrfrist: Mittwoch, 11. Juli 2018, 11.00 Uhr PRESSEINFORMATION Das sind die Preisträger des PRAEMIUM IMPERIALE 2018 Die Japan Art Association verkündet heute in Berlin, Paris, Rom, London, New York und Tokio die diesjährigen Preisträger: Malerei: Pierre Alechinsky Skulptur: Fujiko Nakaya Architektur: Christian de Portzamparc Musik: Riccardo Muti Theater/Film: Catherine Deneuve „Grant For Young Artists“ geht an die Shakespeare Schools Foundation 1988 – 2018: PRAEMIUM IMPERIALE wird 30 Berlin, 11.
    [Show full text]
  • Megaforma Jako Miejski Krajobraz
    57 Kenneth Frampton* MEGAFORMA JAKO MIEJSKI KRAJOBRAZ MEGAFORM AS URBAN LANDSCAPE Zaczął się już nowy wiek, obfitując w liczne monumentalne realizacje. Warto więc może przypomnieć ten tekst, napisany jeszcze przed końcem ubiegłego stulecia, które pozostawiło po sobie niedostatek odpowie- dzialności za kształtowanie miejskiego środowiska. W rozważaniach nad trudnościami, jakie stoją obecnie przed architekturą i urbanistyką, powraca aspekt skali i rola samego aktu oznaczania miejsca. Elementów, które wciąż pozostają w dyspozycji architektury. Słowa kluczowe: megaforma, megastruktura, krajobraz, forma terenu, megalopolis, urbanistyka XX w. The new century full of monumental projects has begun. It is worth to remind this text written when the past century was drawing to a close, leaving us a lack of responsibility of giving shape to the urban environment. In the discourse on the difficulties we have to overcome today in architecture and urban planning, there is the aspect of scale and role of marking a place that are particulary taken in consideration. Elements that are still available in architecture. Keywords: megaform, megastructure, landscape, landform, megalopolis, XX. century urban planning The flight of the plane provides a spectacle with But once he has come down to earth a lesson – a philosophy. No longer a delight of the his aims and determinations have found senses. When the eye is five feet or so above the a new scale. ground, flowers and trees have dimension: a Le Corbusier, 1935 measure relative to human activity, proportion.
    [Show full text]
  • First Exhibition to Explore Eduardo Chillida's
    FIRST EXHIBITION TO EXPLORE EDUARDO CHILLIDA’S MULTITUDE OF MEDIA TO OPEN AT THE MEADOWS MUSEUM Related Show Highlights Chillida’s Connections to Dallas Dallas, TX – February 1, 2018 – This spring, the Meadows Museum will present Dallas’s first exhibition dedicated exclusively to the work of Eduardo Chillida (1924–2002). Chillida, one of Spain’s most celebrated modern sculptors, is famous for his monumental iron and stone sculptures that shape both urban and rural landscapes. This exhibition includes 66 of the artist’s works, from his sculptures, to his drawings, collages, gravitations, graphic works, and a selection of his books. Co-curated by William Jeffett, chief curator of exhibitions for The Dalí Museum, and Ignacio Chillida, the artist’s son, the works in Memory, Mind, Matter: The Sculpture of Eduardo Chillida come exclusively from the Museo Chillida-Leku in Hernani (San Sebastián, Spain); the exhibition travels to Dallas from the Salvador Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida. A complimentary exhibition, Chillida in Dallas: De Musica at the Meyerson, is curated by Meadows/Mellon/Prado Curatorial Fellow Amanda W. Dotseth and will focus on the landmark commission by Chillida at Dallas’s Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center. The two exhibitions will open on February 4, 2018, and run through June 3. Memory, Mind, Matter: The Sculpture of Eduardo Chillida focuses on the mature part of Chillida’s career, when he produced works such as Peine del Viento XV (Wind Comb) in 1976 and Elogio del Horizonte (Eulogy to the Horizon) in 1990, while also presenting important, rarely displayed works. The exhibition addresses the artist’s interest in space and form, which is anchored to the human body and to organic elements found in nature.
    [Show full text]
  • Descarga El Catálogo En
    COLEccIÓN CIRCA XX PILAR CITOLER LENGUAJES DE PAPEL CÍRCULO DE BELLAS ARTES ExpOSICIóN Presidente Organizan Juan Miguel Hernández León Círculo de Bellas Artes Comunidad de Madrid Director Juan Barja Comisaria Pilar Borrás Subdirector Javier López-Roberts Área de Artes Plásticas del CBA Laura Manzano Coordinadora cultural Eduardo Navarro Lidija Sircelj Silvia Martínez Luisa Grass Adjunto a dirección César Rendueles Coordinación Ana María García Rosa Juanes CONSEJERÍA DE CULTURA Y TURISMO DE LA COMUNIDAD DE MADRID Subdirección General de Museos de la Comunidad de Madrid Consejero de Cultura y Turismo Coordinación: María Baéz Santiago Fisas Ayxelà María Carrillo Conservación: Elena Saúco Viceconsejera de Cultura y Turismo Concepción Guerra Martínez Catalogación Alfonso de la Torre Secretaria General Técnica Cristina Torre-Marín Comas Montaje Departamento Técnico del CBA Directora General de Archivos, Museos y Horche Bibliotecas Isabel Rosell Volart Transporte Transportes Tema Subdirectora General de Museos Carmen Jiménez Sanz Seguros Axa Art Asesor de Artes Plásticas Carlos Urroz Arancibia catáLOgO Área de edición del CBA Jordi Doce Elena Iglesias Serna Esther Ramón Javier Abellán Diseño Estudio Joaquín Gallego Fotografías Luis Toloba fotógrafos Impresión Brizzolis © Círculo de Bellas Artes, 2008 Alcalá, 42. 28014 Madrid www.circulobellasartes.com isbn: 978-84-87619-44-1 © Comunidad de Madrid, 2008 Alcalá, 31. 28014 Madrid www.madrid.org ISBn: 978-84-451-3146-6 Depósito Legal: M-39026-2008 COLEccIÓN CIRCA XX PILAR CITOLER LENGUAJES DE PAPEL El Círculo de Bellas Artes (CBA), siempre atento a las manifestaciones artísticas de la mo- dernidad, y en estrecha colaboración con la Comunidad de Madrid, rinde homenaje, en la persona de Pilar Citoler, a la aventura personal del coleccionista, paralela a la del artista, por su inestimable ayuda y promoción al desarrollo del arte.
    [Show full text]
  • Eduardo Chillida
    Press Release Eduardo Chillida Hauser & Wirth Zürich 17 January — 2 March 2019 Opening: 16 January 2019, 6 —8 pm Hauser & Wirth is delighted to present an exhibition devoted to the artist Eduardo Chillida, Spain’s foremost sculptor of the 20th century. Chillida is highly revered as a relentless innovator who challenged the conventions of sculpture through a questioning of form, material and space. Conceived as a celebration of the artist’s mastery of materials, the presentation is the first of its kind in the Zurich gallery and showcases Chillida’s wide- ranging and pioneering practice through a presentation of rarely exhibited works. The selection of significant artworks, which spans over a timeline of 50 years, includes small- and large-scale sculptures in steel, chamotte clay, granite and alabaster, as well as drawings, engravings and his Gravitaciones (Gravitations). With a number of Chillida’s sculptures included in the permanent collections of prominent Swiss institutions, the works in the exhibition contextualise the presence of the artist within the Swiss cultural landscape. Born in San Sebastián in 1924, Chillida was continually inspired by the natural and industrial environment of the Basque Region, reflected in his diverse choice of materials including steel, iron and wood. Combined with a deep understanding and respect for these media, the artist’s interests in the possibilities of defining space and light through form were principles at the core of his practice. These lasting ideas originated from his time studying architecture in Madrid during the early 1940s, a field which had a long-standing impact on his career. Chillida often drew upon influences from European and Eastern philosophies, poetry, and history, and his experiments with abstract forms encompass both physical and metaphysical concerns.
    [Show full text]
  • New Spanish Painting and Sculpture Exhibition
    <^^r B \L~.i >u^t X^y. y*Z,. >/; THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART 11 WEST 53 STREET. NEW YORK 19. N. Y. No. 85 TIUPHONl! CIICLI MM For Release: Wednesday, July 20, i960 Press Preview: Tuesday, July 19, i960 11 a.m. - k p.m. I MpV Spanish Painting and Sculpture, an exhibition of fifty-four works by sixteen Iaftis^3 who have come into prominence during the past decade, will be on view at the I Museum of Modern Art, 11 West 53 Street, New York City, from July 20 through September 125. Following the New York showing the exhibition will be sent to museums throughout I the country, the first survey of avant-garde Spanish art to tour the United States. As Frank O'Hara, director of the exhibition, points out in the catalog/* the I selection is intended to indicate the diversity of styles and preoccupations by which I some of the leading figures are developing their individual idioms. The artists in- I eluded are the painters Rafael Canogar, Modest Cuixart, Francisco Farreras, Luis IFeito, Manolo Millares, Lucio (Munoz), Manuel Rivera, Antoni Saura, Antonio Suarez, I Antoni Tapies, Joan Josep Tharrats, and Manuel Viola; and sculptors Eduardo Chillida, Martin Chirino, Oteiza (Jorge de Oteiza Embil) and Pablo Serrano. Each is represented by two to four works installed by Wilder Green, Assistant Director of the Department of Architecture and Design. Fifteen private collectors and galleries here and abroad as well as the artists • themselves have lent works to the exhibition. Many have never been shown in this country.
    [Show full text]
  • Eduardo Chillida
    Eduardo Chillida 1 a d a m g a l l e r y Graphic Works 24 CORK STREET London W1S 3NJ t: 0207 439 6633 13 JOHN STREET Bath BA1 2JL t: 01225 480406 e: [email protected] www.adamgallery.com Eduardo Chillida (1924-2002) is a major figure in twentieth century art. During his lifetime he exhibited widely in museums in european cities including the Hayward Gallery, London as well as throughout the USA including at the Guggenheim, New York and the National Gallery, Washington DC. His work is now held in the permanent collections of many major museums such as Tate Gallery, London, the Metropolitan Museum, New York and the Art Institute of Chicago. Numerous sculptures commissioned for public places can be seen internationally, such as his monument to German reunification near the Chancellery in Berlin. Chillida represented Spain in two Venice Biennales where he was awarded the International Grand Prize for Sculpture (1958) and the Kandinsky award (1960). He has received many major international awards for his work, including the the Gold Medal of Fine Arts, Madrid (1981), the Great Prize of the Arts of France (1984), and the Imperial Prize of Japan (1991), whilst in the UK he was elected an honorary Royal Academician, London (1983) and a member of the Academy of Boston and New York, USA (1995). In 1998, he had a major retrospective at the Reina Sofía Museum, Madrid and a comprehensive retrospective at the opening of the Guggenheim, Bilbao in 1999. Kosme de Barañano, the Curator of this Guggenheim show, described Chillida as ‘one of the three pillars of sculpture in the twentieth century’ (alongside Constantine Brancusi and Alberto Giacometti).
    [Show full text]