Contemporary Spanish Sculpture

The BBVA Collection is pleased to present a selection of works showcasing the various different tendencies within Spanish sculpture from the mid-twentieth century up until the present.

Throughout the twentieth century, the concept of sculpture underwent a thorough process of analysis and redefinition which questioned the very limits of the discipline and divested it of features hitherto believed to be intrinsic to it, such as monumentality, solid volume and opacity, the use of noble materials and the treatment of transcendental themes.

For instance, one can see how materials and techniques borrowed from construction gained great traction. By adopting the use of steel, iron and welding, many leading sculptors would begin to explore the openness of forms, the expressive value of empty space or the representation of motion, thus allowing them to materialize abstract works. In this regard, we would highlight the works by Jorge Oteiza (1908-2003), Eusebio Sempere (1923-1985), Andreu Alfaro (1929-2012), Amadeo Gabino (1922-2004), Martín Chirino (1925-2019) and Eduardo Chillida (1924-2002).

Also worth underscoring is the impact of movements like
in the work of artists such as the Equipo Crónica collective, who fused these international trends with the Spanish tradition.

Of particular note is the heightened expressiveness of works following figurative tendencies by artists such as David Lechuga (1950) or Francisco Leiro (1957), with a primitivist air and a marked influence of the avant-gardes.

In keeping with the essence of the BBVA Collection, we are lending special attention to a series of mural works resulting from the support for artistic creation on behalf of banking institutions. A frequent practice particularly throughout the seventies and eighties, murals were commissioned to major artists like the aforementioned Amadeo Gabino or Eusebio Sempere, and to others like Ángel Orensanz (1940) or Feliciano Hernández (1936-2018). Indeed, in recent years the BBVA Collection has been undertaking the crucial work of preservation and lending greater value to these pieces.

On the other hand, sculpture was the chosen field of experimentation for a number of artists within the orbit of Conceptualism and
whose output was particularly prolific following the arrival of democracy to Spain and who found a place within the wider international art scene. This is the case of works by Eva Lootz (1940), Adolfo Schlosser (1939-2004), Nacho Criado (1943-2010) or Cristina Iglesias (1956), halfway between objects and installations.

Taking a look at more recent proposals, also worth mentioning are works by Mar Solís (1967) or David Rodríguez Caballero (1970) which, inspired by the forms of nature, stand out for their lightness and elegance.

And, finally, we would underline a group of works which include new technologies and materials. By means of the use of elements normally removed from the world of art, like LEDs or fibre optic, Pablo Armesto (1970) literally manages to render light in his works, while Daniel Canogar (1964) questions the datafied society in which we live, at once fascinated by and concerned with our relationship with new technology.

These works evince how flexible the term sculpture would become during the last century and the concomitant expressive potential afforded by the incorporation of new materials.