The Queen delivers the Velázquez Prize to Jaume Plensa

Queen Doña Letizia, accompanied by José Ignacio Wert, presented the Velázquez Prize of Visual Arts 2013 to the sculptor Jaume Plensa (Barcelona, 1955)

In her speech, Doña Letizia expressed her joy to present the award to Plensa. "Being appreciative with an artist who uses ideas as raw material, who achieves powerful works with a friendly content, who captures the essence of the human in form to gather thoughts and –allow me the neologism-- physicality, a sculptor who has the ability to be an intellectual artist without losing his humanity, be appreciative –I mean-- is very easy, "said the Queen, who highlighted his work in public spaces.

The Queen recalled one of the messages of Jaume Plensa, "art should enlighten the world and not the other way around". "From his studio in Sant Feliu de Llobregat he launches to that world that runs permanently his artistic message, that 'thought that fills immensity', recalling his everyday referent, William Blake. In transit the artist travels from the personal expression to the collective, Plensa proposes a holistic and conciliatory vision, a universal proposal that puts him in the center of artistic creation at his highest level of excellence and now here we recognize with this award Velázquez of Arts "concluded Madame Letizia.

Consistency
 

According to the jury´s desicion, that gathered on November 25^th , 2013, granting this award was motivated by "the consistency of a career in which he has renewed in depth the visual language of sculpture, integrating poetry and conceptualization with proposals of great aesthetic intensity. "

Jaume Plensa is an artist dedicated to sculpture, but has also worked in theater and opera projects with designing sets and costumes. He has taught at the Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts in Paris and has lectured at numerous universities and institutions. In 2005 he was awarded Doctor Honoris Causa by the School of the Art Intitute of the University of Chicago in 2005.

Several Stages
 

His sculpture work has gone through several stages widely developed with the recovery of materials, iron, bronze, copper, etc. In 1986 he began a series of sculptures in cast iron, to which he incorporated light, embossed texts, etc. He has recently worked with synthetic resin, molten glass, alabaster, stainless steel, marble, plastic, light, video and sound. He also has extensive production work on paper and graphic works.

He was National Prize of Plastic Arts 2012, and among other national and international awards has been awarded the Medaille des Chevaliers des Arts et Lettres from the Ministry of Culture (France, 1993), the Prize of the Fondation Atelier Calder (France, 1996), the National Prize of Culture 1997 Plàstiques d'Arts de la Generalitat de Catalunya, the Mash Award for Public Sculpture (London, 2009) and the National Graphic Arts Award 2013 awarded by the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando.

In public spaces
 

Many of his sculpture works are exhibited in public spaces. He has works in cities of Spain, France, Japan, England, Korea, Germany; Canada, USA, etc. / The Crown Fountain / at Millennium Park in Chicago has been one of his major projects, and certainly one of the most brilliant. In 2005 he finished / Breathing / to the BBC in London; / Conversation à Nice / in Place Massena in Nice (France); / El Alma del Ebro / for Expo Zaragoza; / Dream / in St.Helens (England); / World Voices / in Dubai (UAE); / Ogijima's Soul / (Japan); / Awilda / Salzburg (Austria); / Tolerance / for the city of Houston (USA); / Echo / The Madison Square Park (New York); Mirror at the University of Houston; / Olhar nos meus Sonhos / Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); and the most recent, / Wonderland / City of Calgary (Canada).

His work has been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums in Europe, United States and Japan. He regularly exhibits his work at the Galerie Lelong in Paris and New York, and Richard Gray Gallery in Chicago and New York.

The Velázquez Prize of Visual Arts is awarded by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports since 2002 to reward the work of a creator in all its manifestations. It is worth 100,000 euros.

Timeline Award


 

2002. Ramón Gaya.

  2003. Antonio Tapies.

  2004 Palazuelo.

  2005. Juan Soriano.

  2006. Antonio López.

  2007. Luis Gordillo.

  2008 Meireles.

  2009. Antoni Muntadas.

  2010 Doris Salcedo.

  2011. Artur Barrio.

  2012. No failed.

  2013. Jaume Plensa.

  2014 Esther Ferrer.

 

Source: hoyesarte