Chelín

“CHELÍN,” JOSÉ EDUARDO MARTÍNEZ GONZÁLEZ (A Coruña, 1945–2016).
“Head IX,” 2005.
Oil on paper mounted on panel.
Signed and dated in the lower right corner.
Measurements: 24 × 19 cm; 35 × 34 cm (frame).

In his late period, Chelín returned to figurative motifs without abandoning the formal techniques he had developed during his extensive career in abstract art. The head is reduced to an essential structure, constructed through overlapping chromatic planes, broken lines, and contours of marked graphic intensity. The dominant red unifies the surface, while yellow, orange, and blue articulate the different planes of the face. The incorporation of mounted paper introduces variations in texture and relief, reinforcing a conception of painting based on both color and materiality.

José Eduardo Martínez González, known as Chelín, trained at the San Fernando School of Fine Arts in Madrid. In the late 1960s, he participated in the founding of the Galician art groups A Carón and Galga, and subsequently developed a career linked to avant-garde abstraction, though he maintained a constant dialogue with figurative art. He won the Isaac Díaz Pardo Prize in 1999 and 2000. His work is held, among other institutions, by the Carlos Maside Museum, the María José Jove Foundation, the Mendoza Foundation in Caracas, and various public and private collections.