Iñigo Manterola: this Basque artist has presented a new series entitled “Retratos Trazo,” in which a portrait emerges through a seemingly random brush stroke
Iñigo Manterola: this Basque artist has presented a new series entitled “Retratos Trazo,” in which a portrait emerges through a seemingly random brush stroke
Iñigo Manterola’s career has undergone a very notable evolution in recent years, with the capture of movement being his greatest obsession. He began working figurative art with seascapes and then introduced lines on canvases that represented the movement of fishermen. Little by little, those sinuous lines began to leave the canvas, taking on the form of a sculpture painting at first, only to subsequently give way to sculpture. In the end, the lines completely abandoned the figurative realm to become an entity in and of themselves: powerful sculptures that embody not only Manterola’s kinetic desires but also the deep-rooted Basque seafaring culture.
Recently, the artist has presented a new series entitled “Retratos Trazo,” in which the movement has taken a new path, with a portrait emerging through a seemingly random brushstroke. All the works are of the same size (100 x 100 cm) and are painted on a wooden panel on a frame, each representing a yellow face – the color of fishermen’s raincoats. In this series, the focus on physical resemblance fades away, giving way to an exploration of the relationships between faces: depending on how we position the pieces (with the characters face to face or turning their backs to each other), either a sense of communication and complicity seeps through or –in contrast– a lack of communication and possible anger between them. This play with the different positions of the pieces is fundamental in order to express the emotional dynamics that the artist wishes to convey.
“Retratos Trazo” has just been debuted at the gallery that the artist recently opened in the center of San Sebastián: a welcoming space dedicated to bringing his art closer to visitors and locals. Those who wish to learn more about his art can visit his workshop in Zarautz: a spectacular two-story atelier that houses a large exhibition space, his painting studio, and the workshop where he creates his small- and medium-scale sculptures. In the artist’s studio, his creative universe can be felt like nowhere else. The studio is also the place that brings together the largest number of pieces from Manterola’s different series, unequivocally showcasing the evolution of that eternal movement that the artist so vividly manages to capture.
Iñigo Manterola
Calle San Bartolomé 7, San Sebastián.
Tel.: +34 617 332 813
