Biography of Eduardo Chillida
Spanish sculptor Eduardo Chillida, born 1924 in the Basque country, achieved international recognition during his lifetime and exhibited his works at 4 documenta exhibitions and biennales. Having started off studying architecture, Chillida never lost his fascination with space, and his monumental abstract sculptures in iron or granite are a continual unanswered meditation on the theme.
In 1949 after completing his studies at the private art academy Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid, Eduardo Chillida began working on his iron sculptures. Chillida always worked closely with the producers of his work, and labored to achieve the perfect alloy to allow the rustiness integral to many of his public iron works. By mostly using homogenous material, Chillida ensured that the viewer was not distracted by matters of material but focused instead on the relationships between the figures of his sculptures and his environment. Much of his work is characterized by a kind of stigmatized movement evident in much of his sculpture, a tension created by its own constraints.
By the 50s Eduardo Chillida began showing an interest in graphic design and began producing etchings, lithographs, and silkscreens. Printmaking was an important part of his artistic output and allowed him to experiment and develop his interest in form, layout as well as framing. Eduardo Chillida died in San Sebastián in 2002. His work can be found in most major museum collections around the world, including the Tate in London, MoMA in New York, and the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin.
