Nestor Basterretxea Arzadun (6 May 1924 – 12 July 2014) was a
Basque
Basque may refer to:
* Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France
* Basque language, their language
Places
* Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France
* Basque Country (autonomous co ...
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
artist, born in
Bermeo
Bermeo is a town and municipality in the ''comarca'' of Busturialdea. It is in the province of Biscay, which is part of the autonomous region of the Basque Country in northern Spain.
With a population of 16,765, it is the most important fishing ...
,
Biscay
Biscay (; eu, Bizkaia ; es, Vizcaya ) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lordship of Biscay, lying on the south shore of the eponymous bay. The capital and largest city is Bilbao.
B ...
,
Basque Autonomous Community
The Basque Country (; eu, Euskadi ; es, País Vasco ), also called Basque Autonomous Community ( eu, Euskal Autonomia Erkidegoa, links=no, EAE; es, Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco, links=no, CAPV), is an autonomous community of Spain. It ...
. In the 1950s and 1960s, he spearheaded along with other artists such as
Jorge Oteiza
Jorge Oteiza (October 21, 1908 – April 9, 2003), was a Basque Spanish sculptor, painter, designer and writer from the Basque Autonomous Community, renowned for being one of the main theorists on Basque modern art.
Oteiza was born in Or ...
, Remigio Mendiburu, or
Eduardo Chillida
Eduardo Chillida Juantegui, or Eduardo Txillida Juantegi in Basque (10 January 1924 – 19 August 2002), was a Spanish Basque sculptor notable for his monumental abstract works.
Early life and career
Born in San Sebastián (Donostia) to Ped ...
, an avant-garde artistic movement concerned with the crisis of Basque identity, and formally a special focus on large volumes and the concept of emptiness.
Career
In the 1952 Basterretxea was commissioned along with other Basque artists the reconstruction of the Franciscan
Sanctuary of Arantzazu
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Arantzazu is a Franciscan sanctuary located in Oñati, Basque Country, Spain. The shrine is a much appreciated place among Gipuzkoans, with the Virgin of Arantzazu being the sanctuary's namesake and patron saint of ...
. He was assigned the works to design the paintings covering the crypt. After a year-long period and halfway to completion, the paintings were held to be controversial by Church officials and works were suspended ''sine die''. Despite their completion in 1984, the paintings were publicly unveiled and put on show only in September 2009, after an agreement was finally reached with the veteran artist. The Arantzazu reconstruction project paved the way to the establishment of the influential artistic group
Gaur
The gaur (''Bos gaurus''; ), also known as the Indian bison, is a bovine native to South Asia and Southeast Asia, and has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1986. The global population was estimated at a maximum of 21,000 m ...
('today') in the 1960s.
In 1973, he presented in Bilbao's Museo de Bellas Artes (
Bilbao Fine Arts Museum
The Bilbao Fine Arts Museum (Spanish: ''Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao'', Basque: ''Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa'') is an art museum located in the city of Bilbao, Spain. The building of the museum is located entirely inside the city's Doña Casild ...
) his work ''Serie Cosmogonica Vasca'' (Basque Cosmogonic Series), which included some 19 works made in wood depicting Basque Mythology motifs. In 2008, Nestor donated this series to the Bilbao Fine Arts Museum.
In the 1980s Basterretxea became Culture Councillor for the Basque Government for two years. In 1982, he created the seven branched tree that heads the
Basque Parliament
The Basque Parliament (Basque: ''Eusko Legebiltzarra'', Spanish: ''Parlamento Vasco'') is the legislative body of the Basque Autonomous Community of Spain and the elected assembly to which the Basque Government is responsible.
The Parliament mee ...
.
Towards the end of that decade, he created two of his best known works: ''La Paloma de Paz'' (Peace Dove), initially installed at the Zurriola seafront, Donostia (
San Sebastian), later on moved to a roundabout outside the
Anoeta Stadium
Anoeta Stadium ( es, Estadio de Anoeta), currently known as the Reale Arena for sponsorship purposes, is a football stadium in San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain that was inaugurated in 1993.
The stadium lies at the Anoeta Sports Complex, ...
of the same city, and back to the same location somewhat later. In 1989, the Memorial to the Basque Shepherd was installed in
Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...
.
When Basterretxea entered his seventh decade of life, he started to reflect the Basque conflict in his work.
Basterretxea also engaged in film making, with short films such as ''Operación H'' (1963), ''Pelotari'' (1964), as well as ''Alquézar, retablo de pasión'' (1965), as well as several other documentaries.
In 1968, he came back onto the spotlight with the full feature documentary ''Ama Lur - Tierra Madre'' ('mother earth'), co-directed with Fernando Larruquert. Despite the documentary's countless difficulties with Franco's regime's censorship, it ultimately made it through to the
San Sebastián International Film Festival
The San Sebastián International Film Festival ( SSIFF; es, Festival Internacional de San Sebastián, eu, Donostia Zinemaldia) is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spanish city of Donostia-San Sebastián in September, in th ...
, to public and critical acclaim.
Basterretxea died at his home in
Hondarribia
Hondarribia ( eu, Hondarribia; es, Fuenterrabía; french: Fontarrabie) is a town situated on the west shore of Bidasoa river's mouth, in Gipuzkoa, in Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, Spain.
The border town is situated on a ...
in the morning of 12 July 2014, at the age of 90.
Gallery
References
External links
Nestor Basterretxeaat
IMDb
IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Basterretxea, Nestor
1924 births
People from Bermeo
Basque painters
Basque artists
2014 deaths