Swiss art gallery Hauser & Wirth was founded in 1992, and since then, it has grown to become a global institution, with presence in more than 17 locations in Europe, the Americas, and Asia.
Since 2018, one of those has been the Chillida-Leku, after the gallery and the artist’s heirs reached an agreement for Hauser & Wirth to represent his work worldwide and reopen the museum, which holds more than 40 large pieces. It had been closed between 2011 and 2017.
And we’re mentioning all this because Hauser & Wirth has just announced that they will be organizing a Basque Cultural Festival at their English location at Durslade Farm, en Bruton, Somerset. A large exhibition of Eduardo Chillida‘s works will be on display there from June 26, 2021 to January 3, 2022.
Upon reading through the article announcing the exhibition, his work, and its context, all we could think was “good thing they’re doing a Basque cultural festival,” because we have to say it would be hard for a reader or visitor, based on the information contained in these articles, to infer that the artist was born in our country, or that his work, which has become hugely influential in global contemporary art, was strongly based on Basque traditions.
As the late Pedro Manterola, former curator of the Jorge Oteiza Museum (another global Basque artist firmly rooted in Basque culture), wrote to define the artistic position of Basque art in the mid-20th century: “Building what’s modern with the memory of what’s old.”
Now, with this cultural festival, which will feature Oreka TX and the dance group Kukai will help place the artist in a key context to better understand his work: Basque culture.
Moreover, visitors may also enjoy Basque-inspired menus at the Roth Bar & Grill at Durslade Farm thanks to the collaboration of their chef with the one from Chillida Leku’s Lurra Cafe, accompanied by wine and cider from Álava, Biscay, and Gipuzkoa.
In any case, this is a marvelous initiative that is receiving support from Basque Wine, the Instituto Etxepare, and Turismo de Gipuzkoa.
Hauser & Wirth – 10/2021 – Great Britain
Basque Cultural Festival
Throughout his artistic career, Eduardo Chillida remained deeply connected to the identity of his native Basque region. The weekend festivities invite audiences of all ages to become immersed in an entirely Basque experience, gaining a greater appreciation for this unique corner of the world and its proud heritage. Through traditional music and dance, visitors will be encouraged to create new encounters with important themes central to Chillida’s work.
(Follow) (Automatic translation)
Hauser & Wirth – 2021 – Great Britain
Eduardo Chillida
One of the foremost Spanish sculptors of the twentieth century, Eduardo Chillida is widely celebrated for his monumental sculptures and enduring fascination with interconnected shape, space and organic form.
(Follow) (Automatic translation)
Hazi – 10/2021 – Euskadi
El centro artístico Hauser & Wirth en Somerset (Reino Unido) ofrece a sus visitantes una amplia oferta gastronómica y enológica de Euskadi
La galería “Hauser & Wirth Somerset” albergará hasta enero de 2022 una selección de obras del artista vasco Eduardo Chillida en sus instalaciones de Durslade Farm en Somerset (Reino Unido). La exposición invitará a nuevos encuentros entre la obra de Chillida y el entorno único de Hauser & Wirth Somerset, estableciendo un paralelismo con la visión del propio artista para Chillida Leku.
(Follow) (Automatic translation)
Header photo: Summer Solstice dance performance by Kukai, May 2019. Photo: Alex Abril © Zabalaga Leku, San Sebastián, VEGAP (2021). Courtesy of the Estate of Eduardo Chillida.
Last Updated on Oct 20, 2021 by About Basque Country
