Pablo Serrano 1908-1985. A traveller’s footprints

Pablo Serrano 1908-1985

A traveller’s footprints

21 July 2009 –20 September 2009

Estudi General exhibition room - La Nau

From Tuesday to Saturday, from 10 to 13.30 and from 16 to 20 h.

Sunday, from 10 to 14 h.

NIG 1995.01.0018. Hombre andando en la playa. 1953. 170 x 75 x 80. Bronce.

Without a doubt, Pablo Serrano is one of the most relevant Spanish artists of the second half of the 20^th century, despite the fact that his presence in the country's art scene was not too long: from 1955, when he came back to Spain with a grant given by the Uruguayan government, to 1985, when he died. 

In just a 30-year activity period in Spain, this sculptor from Crivillén (Teruel) reached great relevance, supported by his ongoing commitment to art and Spanish society. It is worth noting that he is the founding member of the Paso Group and one of the most active artists, one that publicly expressed his opinion on the political situation at the time. 

Now, on the occasion of his hundredth birthday, a review of his works is in order, which will surely help us give him the position he genuinely deserves.

NIG 1995.01.0029. Polifemo. 1956. 46,8 x 16,5 x 15,5 cm. Hierro y canto rodado.

NIG 1995.01.0200. Interpretación al retrato de Antonio Machado. 1984. 127 x 108 x 123 cm. Bronce.

The exhibition is devised as a tour along the complex and uncommon evolution of Serrano's art, characterised by a lack of satisfaction in his line of work which he considered to have run out at certain times, hence his search for constant change. We are faced with an eclectic and rich artistic path based on the command of work materials and a trade mastered over many years. His multiple artistic sides –subtly criticised sometimes- were not exclusive to Pablo Serrano. In fact, more recent references can be found, like the artist Gerhard Richter, who also opposed to the phrase “a piece clearly identifiable with…”. 

As in a landmarked track, the exhibition will show us the footprints left by Pablo in his transitions and individual redoubts, art pieces being grouped on the basis of similar theoretical backgrounds showing the artist's evolution within the same discourse. The works are presented together with some preparatory sketches and, in some cases, with manuscripts by Serrano himself supporting and developing the theories behind the exhibits.

NIG 1995.01.0062. Bóveda para el hombre. 1962-65. 52,3 x 49 x 45 cm. Bronce.

NIG 1995.01.0143. Forma táctil nº 3. 1973. 29,4 x 24,5 x 29 cm. Bronce.

Exhibition:

Hombre andando por la playa (1953) is the opening piece. This singular sculpture is the only one which Pablo Serrano initially rescued from his Uruguay works. For him, it symbolised the willingness to start a new way and particularly in this exhibition the outset of the discovery of his own "footprints" in the artistic way he walked. 

The first block groups works already done in Spain between 1956 and 1959. They are examples from the series hierros encontrados, ordenación del caos, quema del objeto and ritmos en el espacio. It includes 11 sculptures and some drawings. 

The second block includes pieces from the period 1962-1976 from the series bóvedas para el hombre (used to represent Spain in the 1962 Venice Biennale), hombres bóveda, hombres con puerta, lumínicas and unidades táctiles. It includes 10 bronze works and some drawings.

NIG 1995.01.0070. Hombre bóveda. 1963-64. 33,7 x 31,2 x 36 cm. Bronce.

NIG 1995.01.0171. Gran pan partido. 1978. 95,5 x 258 x 108 cm. Bronce.

Unidades yunta is the third block, composed of 5 bronze and marble sculptures and drawings. 

The fourth group covers Serrano’s figurative references, which he alternated with abstract works throughout his career. Undoubtedly, his interpretaciones al retrato are some of his most interesting pieces if we bear in mind that his only purpose was to portray his friends, like Machado, to pay homage to the people he admired. The portraits of Aranguren, Gaya Nuño, Alberto Portera, Michel Tapié, Westherdal or the monumental head of Antonio Machado are the six pieces that make up this exhibition section. 

His approach to or review of the paintings of the great masters gave way to series like divertimentos en El Prado or divertimentos con Picasso, la guitarra y el cubismo. From the first series, the show has included La Familia de Carlos IV, La Duquesa de Alba, El Príncipe Baltasar Carlos a caballo, El retrato de Carlos V, and Retrato de Carlos III cazador. 

We cannot overlook Pablo Serrano’s “monumental sculptures”. The exhibition includes his models made for the monuments of Unamuno, Galdós, Ponce de León, Juan March, Labradora turolense and “Encuentro”. This block is complemented by a clip with recordings of the monuments on site, to understand the preparatory work at the studio and the works' final definition in their actual location. 

Another complementary material is a video about Serrano’s life, which helps contextualise the artist and his art work.

NIG 1995.01.0113. Hombre caído con puerta. 1966-67. 61 x 79,5 x 50,3 cm (cerrada). Bronce.

NIG 1995.01.0283. Boceto al Monumento a la Labradora. 1976. 24,5 x 16 x 16 cm. Bronce.

Pablo Serrano. A bibliographical sketch. 

Pablo Serrano was born on 10 March 1908. He fist studied in Zaragoza and then in Barcelona, where he learned sculpture until he moved to Montevideo (Uruguay) in 1939. He spent 25 years there and in Argentina, as a sculptor.

In 1944, 1951 and 1954 he was awarded the First National Prize of the Salón de Bellas Artes of Montevideo, for his sculptures. He returned to Spain after receiving the Award of Montevideo’s Biennale in 1955. That very year, he also earned the Sculpture Prize of the Bienal Hispano-Americana of Barcelona.

His numerous sculptures shifted from neo-figuration to abstraction. In 1957 he exhibited his figurative works (portraits) and abstract sculptures (hierros) at the Ateneo of Madrid. His exhibitions then travelled across Europe and America.

In 1962 he presented 23 works under the title Bóveda para el hombre at the Spanish Hall of the 31^st Biennale of Venice, with great success. His works are exhibited at the Modern Art Museum of New York, Saint Petersburg’s Ermitage Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art of Paris, the Guggenheim, the Gulbenkian Foundation of Lisbon, the Middelheim Museum of Ambers, the Vatican Museum, etc.

He died in Madrid on 26 November 1985.  He donated his works to the Pablo Serrano Museum of Zaragoza. His heirs, Pablo Bartolomé Serrano (his son) and Valeria Serrano Spadoni (his grand-daughter) confirmed the donation.

NIG 1995.01.0078. Carlos III. 1974. Serie: Divertimentos en El Prado. 36,3 x 19 x 15 cm. Bronce.