Sale: 530 / Evening Sale / The Hermann Gerlinger Collection, June 10. 2022 in Munich Lot 89

 

89
Eduardo Chillida
Lurra M-13, 1995.
Fireclay with copper oxide
Estimate:
€ 100,000 / $ 108,000
Sold:
€ 162,500 / $ 175,500

(incl. surcharge)
Lurra M-13. 1995.
Fireclay with copper oxide.
With the artist's signet. Unique object. 27 x 22 x 21 cm (10.6 x 8.6 x 8.2 in).

• Fascinating interplay of closed and open form, ups and downs, inside and outside as well as light and shadow.
• Chillida's formally restrained works from the "Lurra" series are captivating for their unique archaic-cultic character.
• Chillida's sculptures are in important international collections, such as Tate Modern, London, the Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, and the Guggenheim Museum, Venice
.

The work is registered at the archive of the Chillida-Leku-Museum, Hernani/Gipuzkoa (Spain) with the number "1995.029.".

EXHIBITION:
Chillida, Sala Verónicas, Murcia (Spain), April 4 - April 30, 1996, cat. no. 3, p. 19.
L'espai, el límit, el gest, el silenci, Galeria Barcelona, Barcelona (Spain), July 20, 1996.
Chillida, Casa del Consulado del Mar, Malaga (Spain), October 24, 1997, p. 21.
Chillida. el paper i la terra, Centre Cultural de Caixa de Gi, Girona (Spain), July 24 - September 26, 1998, p. 34.
Pelaires 30 años, Pelaires Centre Cultural Conte, Palma de Mallorca (Spain). January 28, 1999, p. 79.
Chillida. el papel y la tierra, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, La Coruña (Spain), August 10, 1999, p. 59.
Chillida. El espacio poético, Centro Cultural, Benalmádena (Spain), July 22 - September 19, 2004.

LITERATURE:
Christie's, London, June 23, 2006, lot 202.

"Lurra" is the name of the wonderful compact sculptures by the Spanish sculptor Eduardo Chillida, which he created from fireclay in the 1970s. “Lurra” is the Basque word for “earth”. The refractory material provides the sculptor with ideal properties: it is brittle and only allows minimal deformability. Chillida is a master at processing the block-like, compact basic form, which he makes the ideal carrier of his characteristic design language through sharp-edged subtractions and deep incisions. In "Lurra M-13" we are confronted with a massive body of earth, which, through the minimalist structure of the few deep indentations, creates an exciting interplay of closedness and opening of the form, heights and depths, inside and outside as well as light and shadow. The visual contrast that develops from the hardness of the material on the one hand and the cut marks on the other, which appear to have been cut into soft dough, is particularly beautiful. Chillida works on the still malleable, clay-like mass, the shape of which is then permanently preserved in the firebrick through the firing process. Finally, the partly uncontrollable influences of the firing process also play a decisive role in the final appearance. The rich red-brown of "Lurra M-13" is nicely accentuated by the rust-red areas underneath at the interfaces. It's a vibrant, earthy color that Chillida creates through the use of copper oxide. For Chillida, who came from architecture to art, the space imagined in the puristic and archaic-looking sculptures is an inner place charged with energy. The deep indentations appear to suggest an opportunity to explore this unknown interior, while the blocky chamotte stone permanently encloses and preserves it. It is this excitingly charged charisma that decisively characterizes Chillida's formally reserved works from the "Lurra" series with their unique archaic cult character. [JS/SM]



89
Eduardo Chillida
Lurra M-13, 1995.
Fireclay with copper oxide
Estimate:
€ 100,000 / $ 108,000
Sold:
€ 162,500 / $ 175,500

(incl. surcharge)