Arturo Acebal

ARTURO ACEBAL IDÍGORAS (Tres Algarrobos, Argentina, 1912 - Castro Urdiales, Cantabria, 1977).
"Man with beret on a bench", 1976.
Bronze. Exemplary 3/4.
Marble base.
Signed, justified and dated on the back.
Measurements: 39 x 31 x 26 cm.
Sculptor of Basque-Santanderina descent, Arturo Acebal settled in Bilbao with his family in 1919, when he was only seven years old. In the Basque capital he developed his training with Manuel Urquijo, Villalobos and Higinio Basterra, in addition to working for eleven years with Quintín de la Torre at the School of Arts and Crafts in Achuri. He was also a friend and collaborator of Gustavo de Maeztu. The outbreak of the civil war led him to go into exile in his native Argentina, and he did not return to Bilbao until 1948. In Argentina he also cultivated painting, mainly landscapes and popular types. On his return to Spain he would achieve his definitive triumph, holding numerous individual exhibitions and participating in group exhibitions of the Bilbao Group, which also included Antonio Santafé Lagarcha and Ramón Barreiro Bengoa. Later he would make the international leap, showing his work also in America. He was the direct heir of Paco Durrio, and developed a work marked by schematic synthesis, strength and formal beauty. He worked with different materials but always preferred ceramics, worked with very diverse techniques. In one of his last exhibitions, held at the Winsor Gallery in Bilbao in 1977, Acebal presented his first works in bronze, a material that allowed him to change his aesthetics and make his works more durable over time. Also, this artist made murals such as those of the Miramar Hotel in Castro Urdiales (Cantabria), in 1969. Acebal's works are currently preserved in the MNCARS in Madrid, the Fine Arts Museums of Bilbao and Alava, the Bankunión and Ignacio de la Sota collections in Bilbao and the Provincial Sports Delegation of Bilbao.