• 184_132_377

Lot 502

Pablo Atchugarry

Uruguay / 1954

Senza titolo (1995)

Details

Sculpture - Carrara marble

On a travertine base

Sig.

137 x 82 x 45 cm

Dimensions of the base: 13 x 55,5 x 55,5 cm

With documentation

Literature

  • "Atchugarry: catalogo generale della scultura. Volume Primo 1971-2002" Carlo Pirovano, Electa 2012, nr. 1995-39 ill.

Lot essay

  • Time to tango

    Spotlights on, one step forward, fabric rustling, and: passiĆ²n! The Uruguayan artist Pablo Atchugarry is entangled in an intense and exhausting dance with his beloved marble. Sculpting takes his blood, sweat and tears, but the desire to conquer the hard heart of the rock is unyielding.

    Atchugarry was born in Uruguay in 1954. A child prodigy, having his first exhibition of paintings at the age of 11. But soon the expressive power of sculpting attracts him. In 1972 - he is then 18 years old - his first solo exhibition takes place. In 1979 he discovered the Italian Carrara marble. It's love at first sight. From the very beginning he banishes any modeling, which does not meet to his romantic, almost titanic urge to encounter the stone.

    Working with marble is the noblest act of classical sculpture. Pure and eminent, with flawless skin that captures the shimmer of the light, it wants to be cherished. Many an artist falls for the charms of the stone, which is originally a rough block but already then carries the artwork within it. It's up to the artist to expose it, or as Michelangelo said:

    The sculpture is already complete within the marble block, before I start my work. It is already there, I just have to chisel away the superfluous material.

    Light models the volumes of this 1995 sculpture. Fullness emerges, deep folds are hidden in the shadows. Atchugarry makes the pleats as fine as possible, smoothing the surface sensually, like the baroque drapes of a robe concealing a body. The marble invites you to dance and admire all its angles. Every perspective reveals a different artwork.