20th-21th Century Spanish

Born in Bilbao on 10 November 1942, at the age of fourteen during her summer vacation in San Sebastian she started studying art at the studio of Ascensio Martiarena (1884-1966), where she acquired a particular mastery in drawing.

Between 1958 and 1962 she furthered her training in Madrid attending painting and drawing lessons at Círculo de Bellas Artes and learning engraving techniques while working at the studios of Dimitri Papageorgiu (1928-2016) and Enrique Ortiz (19 34). A detailed contemplation of the works of the great masters during his regular visits to the Prado museum proved decisive in the development of her career.

In 1963, Herrero had her first solo exhibition at Galería Illescas in Bilbao. Later, she spent a sojourn in Amsterdam in 1966-1967 thanks to a scholarship from Diputación de Vizcaya and the Dutch government, where she made the most of the opportunity to expand her knowledge of printing and painting at the Rijksakademie.

From 1969 to 1971 Herrero lived in Paris, with occasional visits to Spain as a result of her ever increasing participation in exhibitions. While in Paris she embraced a figurative language which she nonetheless interpreted from a symbolist perspective. As from that moment, and even though her language was often construed as realist, Herrero created a world populated by imaginative, even fantastic elements. As a result, though constructed with very carefully applied techniques, her works took on a particularly emotive and magical air.

In the mid-1970s the artist returned to her hometown and began a hectic exhibition activity throughout Europe that turned her into one of the most famous exponents of Basque contemporary art.

Whenever speaking of Mari Puri Herrero’s career, one must necessarily highlight her mastery of engraving, a discipline in which she used many techniques, from to linocut or , where one can acknowledge the influence of Goya (1746-1828), Picasso (1881-1973), Ensor (1860-1949) and .

In 1978 she created the character Marijaia specifically for Aste Nagusia, Bilbao’s annual summer festival, a contribution for which she was awarded the 2012 Sabino Arana Prize.

Her works are included in major institutions, including Artium Museum, Spain’s National Library, Reina Sofía Museum or the Museum of Fine Arts of Bilbao.