José Luis Morales Puertas

Born Place: Madrid Birthdate: 1958 Creative environment: Madrid, Ávila Artist Web Formation:

Escuela de Artes Aplicadas y Oficios Artísticos of Madrid [School of Applied Arts and Artistic Trade]. Specialising in Artistic Forging (1985).

Awards and Honours:

Shortlisted for the Concurso Internacional Homenaje a Rafael Zabaleta [International Competition in Homage to Rafael Zabaleta] (1994). Shortlisted for the III Sculpture Competition in Arganda del Rey, Madrid (1988). Shortlisted for the Concurso de Medallas [Coin Competition] by the Royal Mint of Spain. Madrid (1986).

  • ABOUT THE ARTIST

More akin to expressionism than realism in his earlier work, José Luis Morales is capable of giving vitality to fleeting sensations and emotionally intense moments. Once finished in bronze, they are frozen in time enabling the observer to recreate that precise moment as often as they like.


Coming from an artistic family and having studied the theories of two of our country's great sculptors, César Montaña and Venancio Blanco, Morales maintains that "knowing a maestro has an impact. We almost follow suit. His pieces, in this era more figurative, comprise volumes, voluptuous shapes, in some cases on the brink of the primitivism of prehistoric women (Venus, Cierta Fecundidad [Certain Fertility]) and suggestive postures. Siesta, for instance, inspired by a sleeping old lady, transports the observer to the countryside, "to have a rest after a long trip", according to the artist's own words. "No-one focuses on the desperation of 'El Condenado' [The Stricken]", he reveals in reference to the piece exhibited at Galería Capa. With its formal discourse, depicting a person resting against a box, the composition draws similarities with the slaves of Michelangelo, the raw terribilità that emanates from the bronze. And, just like a photo-finish, Recta Final [Home Stretch] represents "the fight to come first, the struggle for power, to be the best, all of which is conveyed in the same volume in which they all arrive at the same time". Modelled in wax and clay, these compositions represent part of the sculptural evolution of the artist who, at present, is more geared towards abstract art and minimalism.


EXHIBITIONS


2011. Colectiva Homenaje a Venancio Blanco [Collective Tribute to Venancio Blanco]. El huerto de Venancio [The Garden of Venancio]. Escuela de Arte La Palma (Madrid).


2005. Index Dubai


2005. Capa Esculturas. United Arab Emirates.


2004. Estampa [Print]. Salón Internacional del Grabado y la Edición de Arte Contemporáneo [International Printmaking and Contemporary Art Fair]. Capa Esculturas. Madrid.


2003. Estampa [Print]. Salón Internacional del Grabado y la Edición de Arte Contemporáneo [International Printmaking and Contemporary Art Fair]. Capa Esculturas. Madrid.


2002. Lineart. Capa Esculturas. Ghent 2002.


2001. Capa Esculturas. Brussels, Belgium


1997. Estampa [Print]. Salón Internacional del Grabado y la Edición de Arte Contemporáneo [International Printmaking and Contemporary Art Fair]. Galería Arte 10 - Capa Esculturas. Madrid.


1996. Galerie Dialogue. Paris. Estampa [Print]. Salón Internacional del Grabado y la Edición de Arte Contemporáneo [International Printmaking and Contemporary Art Fair]. Galería Arte 10 - Capa Esculturas. Madrid


1990. Rascafría, Madrid.


1985. Feria del Campo [Country Fair] Salamanca Provincial Government.


1984. Salamanca Provincial Government.


1983. Castillo-Palacio de Magalia in Navas del Marqués. Provincial Government of Ávila.


1981. Ministry of Culture. Peñaranda de Duero, Burgos.


 


Works by José Luis Morales Puertas