Santos Chavez

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Santos Chávez (born February 7, 1934 in Canihual , Región del Bío-Bío ; † January 2, 2001 in Viña del Mar ) was one of the most important Chilean graphic artists and painters of the 20th century.

Life, studies and career

Chavez came from the South American indigenous people of the Mapuche . From 1958 to 1960 he studied at the Sociedad de Bellas Artes at the University of Concepción and financed his studies a. a. through night shifts as bakers, construction workers, field workers. In Concepción he was influenced by Tole Peralta and representatives of Mexican muralism , including Julio Escamez , Gregorio de la Fuente, and Jorge González Camarena . In 1960 he moved to Santiago de Chile at the invitation of the painter Nemesio Antúnez . Here he studied at the Catholic University and joined the Taller 99 (Studio 99). Here he mainly perfected his lithography and etching technique. Since 1967 he lived in Mexico (Taller Fray Cervando, Mexico City ), New York City (studied at the Pratt Institute ), Chicago (studied at the School of the Art Institute ), Stockholm (1978, Stockholm's Graphic Work Shop) and finally in East Berlin , where he lived in Prenzlauer Berg for 18 years . After the 1973 military coup , he declined the invitation of the Pinochet government to take part in a group exhibition of Chilean artists abroad. In 1994 he returned to Chile. Here he led graphic workshops at the Museo de la Solidaridad. His students called him "The Master".

Artistic creation

In his work, Chávez worked on many motifs from his homeland, especially landscape and mythology.

During his stay in Berlin Chavez also illustrated books for children and young people ( Der Mann mit der Rose , Kinderbuch-Verlag, 1983; Ein Kangaroo in Bernau , Aufbau-Verlag, 1984).

Awards and honors

  • 1966 Premio Andrés Bello , Salón Oficial
  • 1968 Honorable Mention, Casa de las Américas, Cuba
  • 2000 Altazor Prize
  • Honorary Citizen of the City of Tirúa
  • the Universidad de Playa Ancha de Ciencias de la Educación awards a "Santos Chávez" scholarship to Mapuche students
  • since 2008 the Consejo Nacional de Cultura y Las Artes , Chile has been awarding the "Santos Chávez Prize" to artists of indigenous origin

Works in public museums, collections and institutions

literature

  • Santos Chávez, in: Art Quarter. Foreign artists in Berlin. Exhibition catalog. Former AEG factory in Ackerstrasse. May 14 to June 17, 1982 , Berlin, 1982, pp. 73, 126-127
  • Wolf Lippitz, "Poetry, cut in wood. The Chilean artist Santos Chávez", in: Bildende Kunst , issue 8/1984, pp. 377–378
  • Annick Sanjurjo (ed.), Contemporary Latin American Artists , Scarecrow Press, 1993
  • Ingeborg Ruthe, "The village was the world. On the death of the Chilean graphic artist Santos Chavez, who lived in Berlin as an exile" , in: Berliner Zeitung , January 6, 2001
  • Santos Chávez: Xilografias y linoleos. Exposicion Retrospectiva Julio 2004 , Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino, Santiago de Chile, 2004, 72 pages ISBN 956-243-046-4
  • "À la découverte de Santos Chávez, l'artiste mapuche", in: ESPACES LATINOS: Sociétés et Cultures de L 'Amérique Latine , Nº 235, 2006, pp. 13-20
  • Michael Billig, "Santos Chavez. Life's Work" (exhibition review, 2007)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Chavez, Santos
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Chilean graphic artist and painter
DATE OF BIRTH February 7, 1934
PLACE OF BIRTH Canihual , Región del Bío-Bío
DATE OF DEATH January 2, 2001
Place of death Viña del Mar