Antonio Pujía facts for kids
Antonio Pujía (born June 11, 1929 – died May 26, 2018) was a famous sculptor from Argentina. Through his art, he often celebrated women and also showed the terrible problems of the world, like hunger and war.
Antonio Pujía was born in a small town called Polia in southern Italy. This was on June 11, 1929. In May 1937, when he was eight years old, he moved to Argentina with his mother and older sister, Carmela. His father, Vittorio, had already moved there when Antonio was just two.
When Antonio was young, he found it hard to learn Spanish. Because of this, he started drawing things he saw around him that caught his eye. His teachers noticed his talent and encouraged him to study Fine Arts.
Antonio had a son, Vittorio, from his first marriage. Vittorio is now a musician living in France. In 1960, Antonio met Susana Nicolai, who was a psychologist and ceramist. They became partners for life and had two more children: Lino, who is a filmmaker, and Sandro, who is a photographer.
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How Antonio Pujía Studied Art
In 1943, Antonio Pujía started going to art studios in Buenos Aires. He became very interested in painting and sculpture. One of his first teachers was a realist sculptor named Rogelio Yrurtia.
Antonio studied hard and earned several degrees:
- A bachelor's degree in Fine Arts (Drawing) from the School of Fine Arts Manuel Belgrano (1946).
- A degree as a Professor of Sculpture from the National School of Fine Arts Prilidiano Pueyrredón (1950).
- A Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Sculpture from the National College of Fine Arts Ernesto de la Cárcova (1954).
Antonio Pujía's Artistic Journey
Working at the Colón Theatre
In 1956, Antonio Pujía won a competition to lead a new workshop at the famous Colón Theatre. This workshop was for creating sculptures for the stage. He worked there as a director until 1970.
During this time, he became very interested in music and dance. He often watched ballet dancers practice and drew many sketches of them. He even created a sculpture of a famous ballet dancer, Norma Fontenla, which you can see at the theatre. In 1970, he left the Colón Theatre to focus on teaching full-time at his own studio.
Small Sculptures and Jewelry
Even though he didn't see himself as a jeweler, Antonio Pujía's jewelry became very popular in the 1970s. People called it "designer jewelry." He was one of Argentina's most dedicated artists when it came to making small sculptures, often using a technique with beeswax.
His small artworks often featured women, couples, children, and dancers. He once made a special piece of jewelry for his wife's birthday. When he showed it at an art gallery, many women loved it and asked him to make rings and other pieces for them. This is how he started creating artistic jewelry. His small, detailed pieces were known for their delicate beauty and emotional depth.
Art About World Problems: The ¿Biafra? Series
In 1971, Antonio Pujía created a series of sculptures called ¿Biafra?. This collection showed a new direction in his art. He started to focus on serious social and global problems.
The ¿Biafra? series was inspired by the terrible hunger and death that happened during the Biafra War in Africa. Pujía explained that these artworks were about the suffering caused by hunger everywhere, not just in Biafra. He felt that hurting children through hunger was one of the most unfair things humans could do. He saw a photograph of a child from Biafra, and it deeply moved him to create these powerful sculptures. This series, made from bronze and other materials, is considered some of the most important sculpture in Argentina's history.
Celebrating Love: The Love Series
From the 1960s until his death, Antonio Pujía used clay, plaster, bronze, and marble to create sculptures celebrating the love between couples. He called one of his large marble sculptures, which is over two meters tall, "Column of Life."
Pujía believed strongly in the power of love. He saw love as the opposite of all the bad things in the world, like aggression, destruction, and torture. He felt that humans are always caught between these two feelings: hate and love, destruction and creation.
In his "Love Series," men and women are shown in different ways, sometimes embracing, sometimes standing alone, but always connected. He even created sculptures where a man and a woman are joined into one figure, showing that a couple can become a single, complete being. This idea also showed his belief in gender equality.
Designing Medals
Starting in 1971, Antonio Pujía designed many artistic medals. These medals were made to celebrate special events or to honor important people. A medal is a small, flat piece of metal, often round, with a design or portrait on it. It can be given as an award for achievements in sports, science, or other fields.
Here are some of the medals he designed:
- 1971: Grand Prize for the SADAIC (Argentina Association of Authors and Composers).
- 1978: TV award for the Argentinian Chamber of Television.
- 1980: Plaque for the 80th anniversary of the Colón Theatre.
- 1980: Medal and Trophy for the newspaper Clarín.
- 1980: Medal for the 400th anniversary of Buenos Aires City.
- 1983: Medal to celebrate Argentina's return to democracy with President Raúl Alfonsín.
- 1993: Award for ARCOR Company.
- 2010: "In union and freedom" Bicentennial Medal of the May Revolution.
In 1975, he had a very successful art show at the San Martín Cultural Center. He even added all the artworks from his studio to the display! He also lived and worked in Spain from 1975 to 1976, at the famous Escorial Museum.
One of his later and very successful series was called "Homage to the Woman," which he started in 2004. He stopped teaching for a while to focus on this important project.
Antonio Pujía as a Teacher
When Antonio Pujía first started studying art, he never thought he would become a teacher. He just wanted to learn from his own teachers and then work in their studios.
But in 1949, he won an award from an art students' association. The president of the association asked him to teach classes. Antonio was unsure at first because he hadn't even finished his own studies. But he tried it for a month, and that's when he discovered a passion for teaching. He realized that teaching was also a way of learning for him.
For many years, he taught sculpture at several important art schools, including the National College of Fine Arts Ernesto de la Cárcova and the National School of Fine Arts Prilidiano Pueyrredón. He was also invited every year to give talks at the (National University of the Arts).
For a long time, Antonio Pujía also taught special workshops on modeling with beeswax at his studio in the Floresta neighborhood of Buenos Aires. These courses taught students an old technique of using beeswax to create sculptures and how to use it for "lost wax casting" to make both large artworks and small pieces of jewelry.
Awards and Honors
Antonio Pujía received many awards and honors throughout his life:
- 2010 - "Italian Roots in Argentina" Distinction
- 1992 - Illustrious Citizen of Buenos Aires (a special honor from the city)
- 1982 - Cavalieri Ordine al merito della Repubblica italiana (an award from Italy)
- 1982 - Konex Foundation Award for the best visual artists in Argentina
- 1980 - Award from "Salimos" Magazine
- 1974 - Laurel de Plata from the Rotary Club of Buenos Aires
- 1973 - First Prize at the 50th Anniversary of the Santa Fe Annual Exhibition
- 1972 - First Prize at the National Exhibition of Tucumán
- 1971 - Award for Best Exhibition from the Fondo Nacional de las Artes (National Arts Fund)
- 1966 - Grand Prize at the First Sculpture Biennial of Quilmes
- 1960 - Grand Prize of Honor at the National Exhibition
- 1959 - Grand Prize at the Manuel Belgrano Municipal Exhibition
See Also
In Spanish: Antonio Pujia para niños
