Jorge Piqueras
Lima, Perù, 1925 - Parigi, 2020
At the XXX International Biennial Exhibition of Venice in 1960, Piqueras exhibits nine works representing his surprising figurative world in the Peru room, next to the paintings of his friend-colleague Emilio Rodriguez-Larrain. On this occasion, he succeeds in attracting the attention of the most astute critics, including Bruno Alfieri.
Considered one of the promoters of abstract painting in Peru, Piqueras is one of the most important figures of modernism in Peruvian art.
He attends the Academy of Fine Arts in Lima and in 1947 wins the National Sculpture Award; from this date his artistic career began.
In 1951, presented by Lionello Venturi, he has been invited to the Sculpture Exhibition at the Lo Zodiaco Gallery in Rome; the same year he participates in other sculpture exhibitions including the one at the Galleria Numero in Florence, where he exhibits his first non-figurative work, and at the Gallerie Bretau in Paris.
Between 1953 and 1955 he holds the position of professor of painting and sculpture at the Catholic University of Lima; He sets up a modern furniture factory and learns the nitrocellulose technique; with the collaboration of the Peruvian architects Ortiz de Zevallos and A. Cordova, he creates large external murals. In 1953 he attends with three sculptures in the San Paolo Biennial in Brazil. In 1955 one of his paintings is present at the Valencia International Exhibition in Venezuela.
In 1957 the Galleria Numero in Florence prepares a personal exhibition for him presented by the sculptor Pierluca. The same year Leon Degand presents a solo exhibition of his paintings at the Galleria del Fiore in Milan, followed by another exhibition at the Skyscraper Gallery in Legnano.
In 1957 he also participates in the 12th Salon des Réalité Nouvelles in Paris; obtains the Scipione di Macerata Award; he also participates in the 20th Milan Biennale.
In 1958, Alberto Boatto presents one of his personal exhibitions at the Galleria Cavallino in Venice; Piqueras also participates in the first exhibition of Latin American artists in Rome; the Galleria del Grattacielo sets up two other personal exhibitions for him, the first in Legnano, the second in 1959 in Milan. The same year he is also in Messina for his personal exhibition at the Il Fondaco Gallery.
In 1960 the Kunstverein in Dusseldorf organises a new solo exhibition for him.
At the XXX International Biennial Exhibition of Venice in 1960, Piqueras exhibits nine works representing his surprising figurative world in the Peru room, next to the paintings of his friend-colleague Emilio Rodriguez-Larrain. On this occasion, he succeeds in attracting the attention of the most astute critics, including Bruno Alfieri. In 1961 he takes part in the Pittsburgh Prize and the Lorenzelli Gallery in Milan dedicates a solo show to him.
From 1961 to 1966 Piqueras lives in Wissous, a small village near Orly. Like many other artists, due to the increasingly serious housing crisis, he is forced to live outside Paris, while keeping the Atelier in the metropolis. During these years, Piqueras forges a strong bond with Marcel Duchamp and the two artists, with their respective families, frequent each other on daily basis.
In 1964 and 1966 he is again present at the Venice Biennale and in 1969 he attends the Anvers-Middelheim International Sculpture Biennial.
Since about 1968, he devotes himself exclusively to sculpture, relentlessly taking up the theme of the imprisoned man trying to escape, a theme that not only symbolizes the prisoner proper, but the condition of all the insane in general. The prisoner-symbol is always in marble, while the elements of its cell, evoked by simplified shapes and volumes, are wood or Plexiglas.
Piqueras' artistic career undergoest a strong development during these years; the artist exhibits his works on numerous occasions, accompanied by important acclaim.
He has been invited by Jean Dewasne to participate in the Salon de Mai in Paris in 1970; from this year on, he exhibits regularly both in this Salon and at the Salon de la Jeune Sculpture. In the same year he participates in the exhibition "Peintres et sculpteurs d’Amerique Latine" at the Italian-American Institute in Rome. The Michelangelo gallery in Bergamo organises an important solo exhibition in 1973 with the publication of a catalogue.
In Pietrasanta, Piqueras convenes, together with Alicia Penalba, Giuglio Lazotti, Gianni and Michele Benvenuti and numerous other artists, for a tribute to Salvador Allende, Chilean president ousted by General Pinochet. Rafael Alberti, Henry Moore, Renato Guttuso, Alberto Moravia, Italo Calvino and many others participate by signing posters and leaving their footprints "Let's not forget Chile".
In 1975, Piqueras conquers the scene once again with a solo exhibition at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris whose presentation of the catalogue has been written by Alain Jouffroy.
On the occasion of the event "Beloeil 1, Aperçu de la sculpture en France" (Parc du Château de Beloeil, Belgium), sculptures by Piqueras have been exhibited along with works by 27 other artists, including Arp, Bury, Calder, Niki de St. Phalle, Ernst, Etienne-Martin, Honegger, Iposteguy, Jacobsen, Magritte, Miró, Reinhoud, Schoffer, Soto and Tinguely.
After a short period of inactivity caused by a sense of rejection of the art market, in 1987 Piqueras returns to sculpting and painting. For the first time he exhibits a work in Peru, as guest of honour at the III Biennial of Trujillo; there he meets the writer Christine Graves whom he will marry the following year. Piqueras begins to experiment with new materials and new techniques in painting, assembly, collage and several other techniques. In 1988 he exhibits his works in the Municipalidad de Miraflores (Lima) paintings, assemblages and sculptures
In 1991 Piqueras has been commissioned to create a monumental sculpture for the Plaza de los Arqueólogos of the Museo de Sitio, Ancoón, entitled "Monumento a la Arqueologia" made of travertine.
In 1993 he has been invited to participate in the I Triennale des Ameriques in Maubege, France.
In the same year he moves to Rome, Italy, where he resided until 1998.
Piqueras continues to revise his own history, recreating works from damaged remains or worn-out vestiges of previous pieces, recovering materials found on the street or on the beach, using debris to produce objects and collages with ironic references to scholarly or mundane subjects. Nothing is ever lost or discarded. He created a series of ephemeral sculptures. The works of this period oscillate between the autobiographical and the visionary, between denunciations and invocations, in a critical review of his past as an artist.
In 1996 at the Palazzo Ducale in Maierá (Calabria, Italy), he organised the exhibition "Petrified Dreams". On this occasion he invites the artists Iginio Balderi, Eli Benveniste, Alfio Mongelli, Joaquin Roca Rey and Jorgen Haugen Sorensen to exhibit.
In 1997 he is the representative for Peru at the XLVII Venice Biennale.
He participates in the Ibero-American Biennial of Lima as a Special Guest Room. In 1998 he returns with his family to Peru, where he created works of considerable size. In 2003 Bruno Alfieri invites the artist to create the trophy for the annual competition "the most beautiful car in the world", organized by the magazine Automobilia.
In 2010 Piqueras has been awarded with the Orden del Sol al Mérito por Servicios Distinguidos by the Peruvian Ambassador to France on behalf of the Republic of Peru.
In 2020 the Michelangelo Gallery organises the exhibition "The magical power of forms" aimed at paying homage to the artistic career of the most prominent members of abstractionism in Peruvian art: Jorge Piqueras, Jorge Eielson and Emilio Rodriguez-Larrain.
Museums:
Museo de Arte de Lima, Peru
LACMA (Los Ángeles Country Museum of Art), United States
Bibliography.
Metro 2, 1959/1960 (yrs)
Piqueras, catalogo della mostra personale, Milano, Galleria Lorenzelli, 1961
Il collezionista d’Arte Moderna, Torino, Giulio Bolaffi Editore, 1962
Il collezionista d’Arte moderna, Torino, Giulio Bolaffi Editore, 1963
© Jorge Piqueras, by SIAE 2024
He attends the Academy of Fine Arts in Lima and in 1947 wins the National Sculpture Award; from this date his artistic career began.
In 1951, presented by Lionello Venturi, he has been invited to the Sculpture Exhibition at the Lo Zodiaco Gallery in Rome; the same year he participates in other sculpture exhibitions including the one at the Galleria Numero in Florence, where he exhibits his first non-figurative work, and at the Gallerie Bretau in Paris.
Between 1953 and 1955 he holds the position of professor of painting and sculpture at the Catholic University of Lima; He sets up a modern furniture factory and learns the nitrocellulose technique; with the collaboration of the Peruvian architects Ortiz de Zevallos and A. Cordova, he creates large external murals. In 1953 he attends with three sculptures in the San Paolo Biennial in Brazil. In 1955 one of his paintings is present at the Valencia International Exhibition in Venezuela.
In 1957 the Galleria Numero in Florence prepares a personal exhibition for him presented by the sculptor Pierluca. The same year Leon Degand presents a solo exhibition of his paintings at the Galleria del Fiore in Milan, followed by another exhibition at the Skyscraper Gallery in Legnano.
In 1957 he also participates in the 12th Salon des Réalité Nouvelles in Paris; obtains the Scipione di Macerata Award; he also participates in the 20th Milan Biennale.
In 1958, Alberto Boatto presents one of his personal exhibitions at the Galleria Cavallino in Venice; Piqueras also participates in the first exhibition of Latin American artists in Rome; the Galleria del Grattacielo sets up two other personal exhibitions for him, the first in Legnano, the second in 1959 in Milan. The same year he is also in Messina for his personal exhibition at the Il Fondaco Gallery.
In 1960 the Kunstverein in Dusseldorf organises a new solo exhibition for him.
At the XXX International Biennial Exhibition of Venice in 1960, Piqueras exhibits nine works representing his surprising figurative world in the Peru room, next to the paintings of his friend-colleague Emilio Rodriguez-Larrain. On this occasion, he succeeds in attracting the attention of the most astute critics, including Bruno Alfieri. In 1961 he takes part in the Pittsburgh Prize and the Lorenzelli Gallery in Milan dedicates a solo show to him.
From 1961 to 1966 Piqueras lives in Wissous, a small village near Orly. Like many other artists, due to the increasingly serious housing crisis, he is forced to live outside Paris, while keeping the Atelier in the metropolis. During these years, Piqueras forges a strong bond with Marcel Duchamp and the two artists, with their respective families, frequent each other on daily basis.
In 1964 and 1966 he is again present at the Venice Biennale and in 1969 he attends the Anvers-Middelheim International Sculpture Biennial.
Since about 1968, he devotes himself exclusively to sculpture, relentlessly taking up the theme of the imprisoned man trying to escape, a theme that not only symbolizes the prisoner proper, but the condition of all the insane in general. The prisoner-symbol is always in marble, while the elements of its cell, evoked by simplified shapes and volumes, are wood or Plexiglas.
Piqueras' artistic career undergoest a strong development during these years; the artist exhibits his works on numerous occasions, accompanied by important acclaim.
He has been invited by Jean Dewasne to participate in the Salon de Mai in Paris in 1970; from this year on, he exhibits regularly both in this Salon and at the Salon de la Jeune Sculpture. In the same year he participates in the exhibition "Peintres et sculpteurs d’Amerique Latine" at the Italian-American Institute in Rome. The Michelangelo gallery in Bergamo organises an important solo exhibition in 1973 with the publication of a catalogue.
In Pietrasanta, Piqueras convenes, together with Alicia Penalba, Giuglio Lazotti, Gianni and Michele Benvenuti and numerous other artists, for a tribute to Salvador Allende, Chilean president ousted by General Pinochet. Rafael Alberti, Henry Moore, Renato Guttuso, Alberto Moravia, Italo Calvino and many others participate by signing posters and leaving their footprints "Let's not forget Chile".
In 1975, Piqueras conquers the scene once again with a solo exhibition at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris whose presentation of the catalogue has been written by Alain Jouffroy.
On the occasion of the event "Beloeil 1, Aperçu de la sculpture en France" (Parc du Château de Beloeil, Belgium), sculptures by Piqueras have been exhibited along with works by 27 other artists, including Arp, Bury, Calder, Niki de St. Phalle, Ernst, Etienne-Martin, Honegger, Iposteguy, Jacobsen, Magritte, Miró, Reinhoud, Schoffer, Soto and Tinguely.
After a short period of inactivity caused by a sense of rejection of the art market, in 1987 Piqueras returns to sculpting and painting. For the first time he exhibits a work in Peru, as guest of honour at the III Biennial of Trujillo; there he meets the writer Christine Graves whom he will marry the following year. Piqueras begins to experiment with new materials and new techniques in painting, assembly, collage and several other techniques. In 1988 he exhibits his works in the Municipalidad de Miraflores (Lima) paintings, assemblages and sculptures
In 1991 Piqueras has been commissioned to create a monumental sculpture for the Plaza de los Arqueólogos of the Museo de Sitio, Ancoón, entitled "Monumento a la Arqueologia" made of travertine.
In 1993 he has been invited to participate in the I Triennale des Ameriques in Maubege, France.
In the same year he moves to Rome, Italy, where he resided until 1998.
Piqueras continues to revise his own history, recreating works from damaged remains or worn-out vestiges of previous pieces, recovering materials found on the street or on the beach, using debris to produce objects and collages with ironic references to scholarly or mundane subjects. Nothing is ever lost or discarded. He created a series of ephemeral sculptures. The works of this period oscillate between the autobiographical and the visionary, between denunciations and invocations, in a critical review of his past as an artist.
In 1996 at the Palazzo Ducale in Maierá (Calabria, Italy), he organised the exhibition "Petrified Dreams". On this occasion he invites the artists Iginio Balderi, Eli Benveniste, Alfio Mongelli, Joaquin Roca Rey and Jorgen Haugen Sorensen to exhibit.
In 1997 he is the representative for Peru at the XLVII Venice Biennale.
He participates in the Ibero-American Biennial of Lima as a Special Guest Room. In 1998 he returns with his family to Peru, where he created works of considerable size. In 2003 Bruno Alfieri invites the artist to create the trophy for the annual competition "the most beautiful car in the world", organized by the magazine Automobilia.
In 2010 Piqueras has been awarded with the Orden del Sol al Mérito por Servicios Distinguidos by the Peruvian Ambassador to France on behalf of the Republic of Peru.
In 2020 the Michelangelo Gallery organises the exhibition "The magical power of forms" aimed at paying homage to the artistic career of the most prominent members of abstractionism in Peruvian art: Jorge Piqueras, Jorge Eielson and Emilio Rodriguez-Larrain.
Museums:
Museo de Arte de Lima, Peru
LACMA (Los Ángeles Country Museum of Art), United States
Bibliography.
Metro 2, 1959/1960 (yrs)
Piqueras, catalogo della mostra personale, Milano, Galleria Lorenzelli, 1961
Il collezionista d’Arte Moderna, Torino, Giulio Bolaffi Editore, 1962
Il collezionista d’Arte moderna, Torino, Giulio Bolaffi Editore, 1963
© Jorge Piqueras, by SIAE 2024
