On the tenth anniversary of his death, the works of iconic Spanish artist Eduardo Chillida have been commemorated in a collection of rugs from Spanish design house: nanimarquina.
Enrolled in the University of Madrid’s architecture program from 1943, Chillida turned his back on the degree in 1947 in favour of more artistic pursuits that afforded him greater flexibility in his creative expression.
Basing himself in France, the San Sebastián native indulged his appreciation for free form and three-dimensional work by producing predominately clay and plaster sculptures to begin with – moving eventually to heavy metals and oxidised alloys. With his early work focused on human form and the human figure, Chillida soon began to marry his passion for architectural scaling and industrial processes to produce large public works that to this day are found across Europe and some further afield in the US.
What is beautiful about this collection of rugs (personally overseen by Nani Marquina), is that all seven in the series draw their inspiration and richness from the breadth of Chillida’s artistic and technical abilities. His sinuous, artisanal sketches of the female form and clasped hands are transposed beautifully onto rugs - with great effect - as effortlessly as the cubic and architecturally inspired step-carved rugs echo his proficiency at etching and passion for sculpting .
Keeping within a monochromatic palette and confining the collection to rectangular rugs Marquina has curated a tribute to Chillida that will imbue his work with a fresh new perspective for a whole new generation. The full Chillida Collection will be unveiled at Salone Mobile in Milan next week.
Rug images © nanimarquina
