The Irons of Tremor II - Bilbao Fine Arts Museum

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The Irons of Tremor II

Chillida, Eduardo

San Sebastián, 10/01/1924-San Sebastián, 19/08/2002

Wrought iron

28,5 x 63 x 25 cm

Monogram: the initials EC intertwined

1956

Third quarter of the 20th century

03/44

Acquired in 2003

Chillida's oeuvre oscillates between the calligraphic signs of Art Informel, i.e., rapid continuous strokes, and the more compact shapes of imprecise geometry that verged on spatialism. His choice of material usually determined which of the two styles would prevail in each work, for Chillida was especially sensitive to the different plastic values of iron, wood, alabaster, cement and terracotta, his favourite materials.

The Irons of Tremor II belongs to one of the sculptor's most wellknown series and were produced in one of the key moments in his career: it forms part of the group of sculptures that Chillida exhibited in Paris in 1956 and that paved the way for his international recognition. The work reveals a linear development of the iron, its incisive graphic nature and its connection with the work of blacksmiths, makers of farming implements, arms and other primitive tools. Indeed, The Irons of Tremor II seems to abstract the shape of a plough, making it a marker of infinity and thereby transforming it into an object of metaphysical significance. In this sculpture, Chillida conveys the quest for a difficult expression, as he aims to convey to the space the flexible development of a spontaneous graphism, using wrought iron, an extremely hard and intractable material.

Chillida began architectural studies in Madrid, which he soon gave up in favour of sculpture. Following a sojourn in Paris he returned to the Basque Country in 1951. In 1958 he was awarded the Grand Prix for Sculpture at the Venice Biennale. A perpetuator of the sculptural tradition in iron initiated by Picasso, Julio González and Pablo Gargallo, Chillida is one of the key sculptors of the second half of the 20th century. His work in collaboration with philosophers such as Heidegger and Cioran, and with poets such as Jorge Guillén, is a sign of the essentialism that characterises his oeuvre. [Javier Viar]

Selected bibliography

  • Cat. Derrière le Miroir. París, Galerie Maeght, 1956. n° cat. 27.
  • Cat. Eduardo Chillida. Basel, Basel Kunsthalle, 1962..
  • Chillida [Cat. exp.]. Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum, 1966.
  • Cat. Plastik, Zeichnunger, Graphik. Zurich, Zurich Kunsthaus, 1969..
  • Esteban, Claude. Chillida. París, Maeght, 1971. pp. 70, 71, 76, n° cat. 3.
  • Eduardo Chillida [Cat. exp.]. Paris, Maeght, 1979. pp. 42, 156, n° cat. 47.
  • Cinq Siècles d'Art Espagnol : 2, Le siècle de Picasso [Cat. exp.]. Madrid ; París, Ministerio de Cultura ; Musées, 1987. p. 204, n° cat. 139.
  • Chillida [Cat. exp.]. London, Hayward Gallery, 1990. p. 84, n° cat. 3.
  • Chillida [Cat. exp.]. Berlín, Neuer Berliner Kunstverein, 1991. p. 61, il.
  • Chillida en San Sebastián [Cat. exp.]. Donostia-San Sebastián, Sociedad Guipuzcoana de Ediciones y Publicaciones, 1992. p. 164, il.
  • Chillida [Cat. exp.]. Paris, Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume, 2001. p. 79, il.
  • Chillida [Cat. exp.]. Würth, Kunsthalle, 2001. p. 34, il.
  • Chillida [Cat. exp.]. Mexico ; Roma, Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes ; Landucci, 2002. p. 79.
  • Cat. Eduardo Chillida. Madrid, Guillermo de Osma Galería, 2003. pp. 13, 19, n° cat. 3.
  • Carandente, Giovanni. "Chillida : Dardara-burdinak II : Eduardo Txillidaren lan eskuratu berria Bilboko Arte Eder Museoan = Hierros de temblor II : nueva adquisición de una obra de Eduardo Chillida en el Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao = Trembling irons II : a work by Eduardo Chillida recently acquired by the Bilbao Fine Arts Museum", B'05 : Buletina = Boletín = Bulletin, n° 1. 2006. pp. 91-110.
  • Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : guía. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. pp. 188-189.
  • Musée des Beaux Arts de Bilbao : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. pp. 188-189.
  • Bilbao Fine Arts Museum : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. pp. 188-189.
  • Adquisiciones 02/07 [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2007. pp. 64-65, n° cat. 23. (il. cub.)
  • Viar Olloqui, Javier. "Palazuelo eta euskal artea : Irudia margolanean oinarritutako hausnarketak = Palazuelo y el arte vasco : reflexiones a partir de Imagen = Palazuelo and the basque art : Thoughts on Image", B'07 : Buletina = Boletín = Bulletin, n° 3. 2008. pp. 280-282
  • Gida Euskal Artistak. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Eder Museoa, 2008. pp. 130-131.
  • Reguera, Galder. "Centenario del Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao", Arketypo : revista de arte, arquitectura y diseño vasco, n° 13. 2009. p. 147.
  • Torre, Alfonso de la. La sombra de Oteiza en el arte español de los cincuenta = Oteizaren itzala berrogeita hamarreko urteetako espainiar artean. Alzuza, Fundacion Museo Oteiza Fundazio Museoa, 2009. p. 39.
  • Charney, Noah. Pais Vasco : de museos. Barcelona, geoPlaneta, 2010. pp. 59-61.
  • Torre, Alfonso de la. La sombra de Oteiza en el arte español de los cincuenta. Zaragoza, Ibercaja, 2010. p. 95.
  • Eduardo Chillida [Cat. exp.]. Saint-Paul de Vence, Fondation Maeght, 2011. pp. 75, 204, sin n° cat.
  • Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : guía. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2011. pp. 188-189, n° cat. 134a.
  • Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa : gida. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2012. pp. 188-189, n° cat. 134a.
  • Guide Basque Artists. Bilbao, Bilbao Fine Arts Museum, 2012. pp. 129-131, n° cat. 71a.
  • Arte japonés y japonismo [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. pp. 108-109, il.
  • Bilbao Fine Arts Museum : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. pp. 188-189.
  • Musée des Beaux Arts de Bilbao : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. pp. 188-189.
  • Maestros : Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao . Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2016. pp. 110-111, il.
  • Maisuak : Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2016. pp. 110-111.
  • Masters : Bilbao Fine Arts Museum. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2016. pp. 110-111, il.
  • Maîtres : Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bilbao. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2016. pp. 110-111, il.
  • Viar, Javier. Historia del arte vasco : de la Guerra Civil a nuestros días, 1936-2016. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2017. p. 81.
  • L'art basque en resistance : Gaur, 1966 : euskal arte ihardukitzailea [Cat. exp.]. Bayonne, Musée Basque et de l'histoire de Bayonne, 2018. p. 105, il.
  • Después del 68 : arte y prácticas artísticas en el País Vasco, 1968-2018 [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. p. 447, il.
  • Viar, Javier. Hijos de la angustia. Bilbao, Muelle de Uribitarte, 2019. pp. 39, 100, 125, il.
  • Jorge Oteiza - Eduardo Chillida : diálogo en los años 50 y 60 [Cat. exp.]. València, Fundación Bancaja, 2021. pp. 210, 229, il.