Juan José de Oliveira

JUAN JOSÉ DE OLIVEIRA VIÉITEZ (Tuy, Pontevedra, 1928 – Vigo, 2002).
“Horse on the Ground.”
Bronze. Number 94/100.
Signed and stamped by the foundry.
Measurements: 27 x 19 x 12 cm; 32 cm (height with base).
The horse is one of the most representative and recurring motifs in the sculptural work of Juan José de Oliveira Viéitez, who found in this animal an exceptional vehicle for exploring tension, movement, and expressive power. In *Horse on the Ground*, the artist presents a figure with powerful anatomy, rendered in a stark and vigorous style, where the rough surface and pronounced gestural quality accentuate the drama of the composition.
Juan José de Oliveira was an artist who specialized in creating large-scale sculptures of horses and bulls. Although he created his first work at the age of 41, Oliveira was a successful sculptor. Throughout his career as an artist, he exhibited his work in solo shows in Madrid, Barcelona, Porto, Ostend, Caracas, Dublin, Vigo, and elsewhere. He also created monumental works for Pegasus Barajas Airport, “Europa” in Vigo, “El Perro Vagabundo” at the Madrid Zoo, and “El Caballo” in Ciutadella (Menorca), among others. Among his most recent commissions are the monuments to Alfonso IX in Baiona, *La Andadura* in Moeche (A Coruña), *El Pulpo* in Carballiño, *Caballos* for Arzúa, and others, as well as other public sculptures in cities such as Madrid, Guadalajara, Menorca, and Vigo.